Livingston Broomes - Perjury

Broomes, Livingston ; sexual assault; NRE: plea, no crime, perjury/false accusation, inadequate legal defense

NRE synopsis (by Maurice Possley):

"In May 2011, a 32-year-old intellectually disabled woman discovered she was pregnant and accused an acquaintance, 64-year-old Livingston Broomes, of sexually assaulting her.

"Broomes...pled guilty...to engaging in sexual intercourse with someone who was incapable of consent by reason of being mentally disabled or incapacitated. At the time he entered his plea, he said, 'I really didn't rape nobody.'"

"Broomes was sentenced to four years in prison."

"On May 24, 2019, the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office filed a motion to vacate Broomes' conviction. The motion was granted and the charge was dismissed.

"Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez released a statement saying, 'After a lengthy and extensive investigation into this case, I have concluded that the cause of justice requires that we vacate the conviction of Mr. Broomes. Expert analysis of his mental capacity and an examination of the rest of the evidence reveal that the case was prosecuted as if an intellectually able individual had sexual relations with a person incapable of consent. The CRU [Conviction Review Unit] investigation, however, revealed that he also likely suffered mental disabilities and likely did not receive effective legal assistance.'

"Gonzalez said the Conviction Review Unit investigation, which began in 2017, discovered that Broomes had been in a serious motorcycle accident 'in his late teens or early twenties and was severely injured, suffering two broken legs and serious head trauma that left him comatose for more than six months.'

"Moreover, Broomes was diagnosed with dementia within weeks of his arrest. Family members said he was 'slow.'"

"Broomes subsequently filed a claim seeking compensation in the New York Court of Claims. He was awarded $326,923 in 2021."