Pictured are (l-r) Marla Mitchell-Cichon, co-director, Thomas M. Cooley Law School Innocence Project; Denise Larry, Davis's mother; Kymberlie London, attorney who worked on the case as a Cooley student; and Melissa Wiggins, current Cooley student who is working on the case.
After serving almost seven years in prison for a crime he did not commit, post-conviction DNA testing has revealed that Donya Davis is innocent. New DNA testing of biological evidence collected in the 2006 rape case points to another man and excludes Donya Davis. Davis was sentenced to 67 years in prison for the stranger rape of a Detroit woman. Prior to Davis’s 2007 trial, the Detroit Forensic Services (Detroit Crime Lab) tested skin cells collected from the victim’s thighs. Testing of those skin cells also excluded Davis.
“After six years of hard work by a number of Cooley students, the first step towards obtaining justice for Donya Davis has been achieved,” said Marla Mitchell-Cichon, co-director of Cooley’s Innocence Project. “Michigan’s post-conviction DNA testing law, MCL 700.16, is set to expire January 1, 2016. Previous versions of the law would have precluded Davis from seeking the testing that now shows he didn’t commit the crime. Now he is hoping for justice for himself and the victim.”
In 2013, the Thomas M. Cooley Law School Innocence Project sought DNA testing under Michigan’s post-conviction law, MCL 770.16. After testing was ordered, Bode Technology Group in Lorton, Virginia identified sperm cells on thigh samples that were never evaluated or tested by the Detroit Crime Lab. Bode’s testing of that evidence excluded Davis as the source of male DNA. In light of the new evidence, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s office does not oppose the Cooley Innocence Project’s motion for a new trial.
Davis has maintained his innocence since his arrest in 2006. At a bench trial before the Hon. Leonard Townsend, Davis presented an alibi defense. The only direct evidence against Davis was the victim’s identification.
For the last seven years, Davis has made the best of his time in prison. He has maintained relationships with his family through phone calls, visits and letters. The family never gave up on Davis. While in prison, Davis earned his GED, completed a small business education program and completed a commercial driver’s license course. Davis became a serious student of the law and has earned credits towards a paralegal degree. He is currently working towards his culinary arts degree. In addition to his formal studies, Davis has spent his free time learning as much as he can about biology, DNA testing and its role in criminal convictions.
The purpose of the Thomas M. Cooley Law School Innocence Project is to identify, provide legal assistance to, and secure the release of those persons who are imprisoned for crimes they did not commit. The Project has screened more than 5,000 cases since 2001 and has been responsible for the exoneration and release of two other individuals in Michigan: Ken Wyniemko, in 2003, and Nathaniel Hatchett, in 2008. The Project is staffed by student interns who do the bulk of the legal work and several students participated in the development of Davis’s case.
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