Wayne Law to host discussion on sex trafficking prosecution
Experts will gather Monday, April 2 at Wayne State University Law School to discuss careers in the prosecution of sex trafficking.
The event, “The Fight Against Sex Trafficking,” is free and open to the public. It will be from 12:15 to 1:15 p.m. in the law school’s Damon J. Keith Center for Civil Rights, Lecture Hall 2242, 471 W. Palmer St. Parking will be available for $7.75 (credit or debit card only) in Parking Structure No. 1 across West Palmer Street from the law school.
“Sex trafficking is a form of modern day slavery that continues to evolve with advances in technology and the ability of traffickers to prey on extremely vulnerable populations,” said Kelsey Heath, third-year student at Wayne Law and an organizer of the event. “There are numerous myths surrounding sex trafficking, including the notion that it doesn’t happen in Michigan. It is crucial for the public to remain educated and vigilant in recognizing the signs of this atrocious crime.”
Wayne Law Assistant Professor Blanche Cook will moderate the discussion. Cook previously served as an assistant U.S. attorney specializing in large-scale drug and sex-trafficking prosecutions. As a federal prosecutor, she has briefed and/or argued more than 40 federal appeals.
Panelists:
• Kelly Carter, human trafficking chief for the Michigan Attorney General’s Office
• Kevin Mulcahy, assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan
• Sara Woodward, deputy chief (General Crimes Unit) for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan
For more information, contact Kelsey Heath, kelsey.heath@wayne.edu.
Case dropped against Michigan man after 45 years in prison
DETROIT (AP) — A Detroit man whose murder conviction was thrown out after he spent 45 years in prison was exonerated Wednesday and won’t face a second trial.
Richard Phillips, 71, was upbeat, saying the criminal justice system “works — it just didn’t work fast enough.”
A judge granted the prosecutor’s request to permanently drop the case against Phillips, whose conviction was erased last year. He had been free on bond since December. Wayne County prosecutor Kym Worthy said a new investigation by her office backed his claim that he had no role in a 1971 fatal shooting.
She said a key witness lied at his 1972 trial.
“There’s nothing I can say to bring back 40 years of his life,” Worthy said. “The system failed him. This is a true exoneration.”
The case was reopened at the urging of the Innocence Clinic at University of Michigan law school after a co-defendant at the ’72 trial told the state parole board that Phillips wasn’t involved in the slaying of Gregory Harris.
Phillips likely will be eligible for more than $2 million under Michigan’s wrongful conviction law.
“I’ve never carried bitterness around so I’m not a bitter man,” Phillips told reporters when asked about his decades in prison.
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