Eighteen years behind bars for a crime he did not commit. 

“Right now, I’m just, I’m speechless,” said Sheldon Thomas, who was 17 when he was wrongfully convicted in the murder of a 14-year-old boy in East Flatbush. On Thursday, a judge at Brooklyn Supreme Court ordered Thomas to be freed.

What You Need To Know

  • Brooklyn DA Eric Gonzalez said Sheldon Thomas was wrongfully charged with killing 14-year-old Anderson Bercy and wounding another person on December 24, 2004 in East Flatbush

  • According to the Conviction Review Unit, there were two men named Sheldon Thomas who lived in the same precinct, but investigators knew early on that they were different people

  • The Conviction Review Unit has helped overturn 34 wrongful convictions since 2014
  • The reinvestigation also found that Thomas was denied due process at every stage. And because the evidence is defective, the case cannot be retried

“Everyone that believed in my innocence, I just want to tell them thank you,” said Thomas. “I wanna tell them that I love and appreciate them.”

Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said three alleged gang members, including Thomas, were charged with killing Anderson Bercy and wounding another person on Christmas Eve 2004. But Gonzalez said a flawed photo line-up led to the wrongful arrest.

"He was arrested on the identification a witness made of another person that wasn't him,” said Gonzalez. “That arrest brought him into the criminal justice system where he was later prosecuted and ultimately convicted."

In 2004, police officers showed a witness six photos of possible suspects. Police arrested Thomas after knowingly showing the witness a photo of a different Sheldon Thomas who happened to live in the same precinct. 

"There are so many injustices that occurred to him since the day of his arrest to today,” said Thomas’ attorney. “And I think it should be required reading for everyone so that this does not continue to happen unnecessarily because there are more people in the same situation."

Thomas was convicted of second-degree murder and attempted murder. But in court on Thursday, Thomas said he does not hold a grudge against the judge who sentenced him to 25 years to life in prison.

“I forgive him. I forgive him,” said Thomas. “Just like I’ve made mistakes in my life and people have forgiven me and people have shown mercy on me, I will do the same for him.”

This reinvestigation also found that Thomas was denied due process at every stage. And because the evidence is defective, the case cannot be retried.