A woman is robbed for her purse. It is an all too common occurrence— one that happens nearly everyday, in nearly every city. How many times are they reported? How many times do the authorities catch the perpetrator? How often do they get the right person?

This is the story of a case in which the police got the wrong person, and the actual criminal is still at large…

On Tuesday, October 24, 2006 at 7:20 am, the Lexington Police Department received a call that a robbery had occurred on Second Street near TD’s Bar and Grille. According to the police report, a female (name has been omitted to protect her identity) was robbed at gun point by a black man wearing a green coat with fur trim. Officers in unmarked cars were dispatched to the area in response to the call.

Only a few blocks away at approximately 7:30 am, then 18 year-old Corey Wayne Jackson took out the trash before kissing his mother goodbye. Corey had set out to catch the bus to take the exam for his GED. Little did he know that the casual walk to the bus stop would change his life forever.

“Before I left the house, I don’t know; it was something like a sixth sense. As I was getting dressed to leave the house, I heard sirens. I know police sirens from other sirens. I didn’t know what they were out for, but I knew [something major was happening in the area.]”

Coery’s walk from his mother’s home on Eastern Avenue to the bus stop at the corner of Third and Race Street came to an abrupt end when he was arrested by four officers in two unmarked cars who responded to the call of the aforementioned purse snatching. Corey recounts that morning:

“Since we had moved to a new area, I was not sure what store was open that early. All I had was a twenty [dollar bill] so I needed to get change before walking downtown to catch the bus. As I walked [up Second Street] to Third Street, I could see the store [Pak-N-Save] but could not tell if it was open. I got closer to Race [Street] and realized the store was closed because the [security] gate was still on it.

“When I turned around there were two detective cars sitting there. I kept walking and then two cars with two police officers in each one were hanging out looking [at me]. I put my hands up like this (gestures with hands) like ‘what?’ They didn’t do anything; they just kept driving. I walked past Eastern Avenue and some cops went around me. Then another car came and it stopped. I kept walking and then they surrounded me and told me that I matched the description.”

However, he did not match the description, as the perpetrator was said by the witness to have worn a green coat with fur. Corey wore no such coat. In actuality, he was wearing a brown jacket, a red hat, and a wallet chain; none of which were mentioned by the victim in her report. In addition, none of the items in the stolen purse were found in Corey’s possession when he was apprehended.

At 8:20 am, Corey was processed downtown for an arrest as the lone suspect in the purse snatching and sat many miles away from where he had planned to take the GED test. Still at home, his mother, Theresa Carr, suddenly found herself on the receiving end of bad news.

“The police came and knocked on my door, and told me that they had my son in custody. I wanted to know [why]. He just walked out the door, so he couldn’t have done anything,” recalls Ms. Carr.

Meanwhile, Corey was questioned and he asked a few questions of his own. “The first thing I asked was ‘what’s the description?’ and [the officer] told me ‘a green coat with fur.’ I said, ‘How can you mistake a brown coat for a green coat? What about my wallet chain? What about my red hat? How can you miss a red hat?’ It just didn’t [fit].”

After the interrogation, Corey was placed in a lineup for the victim to see if she recognized any of the suspects. This particular lineup, however, was one for the record books.

“It wasn’t a line up. It was just me, standing by myself with my hands [cuffed] behind my back; it wasn’t good.”

Anyone would look guilty in that position, especially a dark-skinned African American male when the alleged suspect in the crime was also a dark-skinned African American man. It appeared that the case was as good as closed.

“The only thing that was going through my mind was 10 to 20, once they told me what [the sentence] carried. I cannot do that.’” Unfortunately, Corey’s worst fears became reality.

In the July 17th trial, Corey Jackson was sentenced to 13 years in prison by a jury of his “peers”; a jury which consisted of 10 white females, one white male and one black male. Presently, he awaits final sentencing August 31st at the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Detention Center. As much as this trying situation has weighed on him, it has weighed on his family equally. Corey’s mother, Theresa details the difficulty:

“It’s been stressful. His little brother (Dominique, 17) almost lost it. Needless to say, it has stressed me out too because I don’t want him in there for something he didn’t do. I was totally positive that when we went to court on the [July] 17th, that I would be bringing him home with me. He doesn’t need to be locked up because he didn’t do it. Once they picked up Corey, I don’t think they tried to find anybody else. A lot of it seems fabricated; they’re railroading my baby and I don’t appreciate that because he deserves better. He really does.”

When examining the entire situation, Corey is grateful for the support of his family. “[Their support has meant] a lot. If is it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t have commissary; I wouldn’t have a lawyer. You wouldn’t know about this if it wasn’t for them. I try not to be stressed in here because I know I got good people behind me.”

Ms. Carr’s support has never wavered no matter how grim the circumstances appear. “Staying positive [for Corey] is not a problem because I figure that justice will be served and he will be found innocent.”

Corey also holds a hopeful outlook. “I can’t do time for something I didn’t do. I just hope to be out, and see my family.”

There are two victims affected by the crime committed on that October day. Obviously, the innocent person taking a walk with her husband did not deserve the senseless mistreatment that occurred that morning.

Yet, the overlooked second victim was also an innocent person who did not warrant the actions brought against him. Corey Wayne Jackson was arrested for simply trying to catch a bus to take his GED exam.

While the alleged victim may sleep with the satisfaction that there is a man behind bars, Jackson is literally fighting for his life. Though a man was detained in this case, justice was not served. There is absolutely no evidence to support the guilty charge against Corey Jackson. None of the belongings from the purse were found at the time of the arrest and the police never searched his residence.

Now the two worst possible outcomes exist from this crime; a criminal is still on the loose and an innocent man spends months and quite possibly years confined.

Surely it is disturbing to read that a young man’s freedom has been unjustly taken from him. But, it is your voice of concern, along with the rest of the community, that could prevent this injustice by reaching out to the newspapers, radios, politicians and anyone else who will listen about the Corey Jackson story. Corey and his family thank you in advance for your allegiance to a just society.

God bless and Free Corey Jackson!