Innocent Man on Death Row Virginia
                              Case Synopsis
JOSEPH ROGER O'DELL, III, has sat on death row in Virginia for over
ten years for a crime he did not commit. Evidence in this case,
reveals a gross miscarriage of justice that was perpetrated by the
State of Virginia. The evidence was circumstantial at best, and was
filled with enough reasonable doubt to cast a shadow under any tree.
The court appointed an attorney, whose expertise was not Criminal Law,
to begin the representation. Then allowed the defendant to represent
himself without a lawyer, when the defendant recognized that his
appointed counsel was lacking in criminal law experience.
On February 6, 1985 the body of a 44 year old secretary by the name of
Helen Schartner was found by a passerby in a muddy field behind a
nightclub in Virginia Beach, Virginia. She had been raped, sodomized,
beaten in the head, and strangled. On February 8, 1985 the Defendant
was arrested for the murder of Helen Schartner.
Testimony Presented at Trial in 1986
The victim met with friends at the County Line Lounge, a country and
western nightclub in Virginia Beach, Virginia, at approximately 8:30
p.m. on February 5, 1985. Her boyfriend, Ike Wright, showed up at
11:15 p.m., and he and the victim immediately started dancing. After
the dance she went to the ladies room. Upon returning from the ladies
room, she left the nightclub at approximately 11:25 and no later than
11:30 p.m.
The defendant was at the same nightclub. He was seen by the victim's
cousin on the other side of the nightclub. There was no contact
between the defendant and the victim that night, or any other time,
nor did they know each other.
Prosecutor's Theory
The prosecutor hypothesized that the defendant waited outside for the
victim, and when she approached her car he put a gun to her side and
forced her to leave with him. He then beat her head with the gun
inside of his car, then raped, sodomized and strangled her. He dumped
her body in a muddy field, and then went to another nightclub, and
showed up in the parking lot covered with blood, allegedly the
victim's. He then went to a 7-11 Convenience Store, covered with
blood, and later went to his landlord/girlfriend's house.
Defendant's Story
The Defendant left the County Line Lounge after 12:00 a.m. and
proceeded to a Hardees Restaurant for something to eat. He then went
to two different bars, staying only a little while, and then went to a
nightclub/restaurant named "The Brass Rail," which is located in the
Ocean View section of Norfolk, Virginia. As the Defendant approached
the entrance of "The Brass Rail", through the parking lot, there were
two men engaged in a fistfight. The Defendant attempted to break up
the fight, but instead became involved in the fight. He got blood on
his clothing from the fight. The Police came, the fight broke up, and
the Defendant went into "the Brass Rail" to clean up in the men's
room, but there were no paper towels or soap. He left and went to a 7-
11 Convenience Store to buy some towels and alcohol to clean up with.
Leaving the 7-11, he went to a restaurant named "Pete's Place," and
went into the men's room and cleaned up. Leaving "Pete's Place" he
proceeded to the home of his landlord/lover's home.
Evidence Presented at Trial
1. Bloody clothing with the blood type being "consistent with" the
victim's blood. This was the MAIN evidence at the trial.
2. A Cigarette Butt found at the crime scene. Testimony revealed that
it came from a softpack of Marlboros. A search of the Defendant's car
revealed he smoked Winstons, and of the 14 cigarette butts found in
the Defendant's car, not one was a softpack Marlboro- most were
Winstons. CONCLUSION: Defendant smoked Winstons.
3. A footprint cast from a footprint found at the murder scene did NOT
MATCH the Defendant's footprint.
4. A "partial" tire track found at the edge of the parking lot, about
50 feet from where the victim's body was found, was said to be similar
to the Defendant's tires. The expert witness would not stake his
reputation that the track came from the Defendant's car.
5. Sperm found in the victim's vagina and anus had a GENETIC MARKER OF
PGM 2-1, the Defendant's GENETIC MARKER IS PGM-1, and is totally
different. (This alone should have excluded and cleared the
Defendant.)
6. No fingerprints of the Defendant or victim, found in either his/her
car, nor any other materials that would link the defendant and the
victim were found.
7. No hairs or fiber from the Defendant were found on the victim's
body, nor anything linking the Defendant and the Victim.
[cont]
--- FMail/386 1.0g
(1:2629/124)
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