- Steven Lopez was 15 in 1989 when a white woman was raped in Central Park.
- Lopez was initially among the "Central Park Five" who were wrongfully accused of the
crime .
Steven Lopez — the lesser known 6th defendant in the infamous 1989 "Central Park Five" case — was exonerated Monday.
Lopez was initially among the group of teenagers of color who were wrongfully accused of raping a white woman in Central Park. While his five innocent co-defendants were ultimately convicted based on false confessions elicited by police, Lopez accepted a last-minute plea deal on an unrelated robbery in the park to avoid the more serious charge.
The six teenagers were sentenced to a collective 45 years in prison, according to the New York Times. Lopez served about four years.
On Monday, New York Supreme Court Judge Ellen Biben agreed with District Attorney Alvin Bragg and Lopez' attorney Eric Renfroe that the hair sample used as DNA evidence and confession were not reliable.
"The people would not be able to sustain their burden at trial and therefore the indictment against Mr. Lopez is dismissed," Biben said in the full lower Manhattan courtroom. "Mr. Lopez, we wish you peace and healing."
The "Central Park Five" — Kevin Richardson, Raymond Santana, Antron McCray, Yusef Salaam, and Korey Wise — were exonerated in 2002 after the real rapist, Matias Reyes, was identified and confessed.
In 2014 that group settled a lawsuit with the City of New York for $41 million and became the subject of films, TV shows, and movies.
Lopez, 48, was not a part of that settlement and his story went relatively unknown.
When asked whether Lopez would seek financial restitution, Renfroe declined to comment.
"I'm just focused on today," he said.
"Move the needle" to repair trust
The case of the "Central Park Five" continues to lead discussions around forced confessions and
Renfoe called the wrongful prosecution of his client an "American tragedy" and thanked the District Attorney, his staff, and the Judge for their work to right the injustice. He told reporters in the courtroom that his client wanted privacy at this time.
"I'm sure hes feeling a range of emotions but I'm hoping today, at the very least, vindicated," Renfroe said.
Lopez had worked with other attorneys on this case before he was referred to Renfoe in 2019, the lawyer said.
"That someone can plead guilty to something they didn't do is not something that is always recognized, but I'm thankful that it was today," Renfroe said.
Bragg, too, addressed reporters after court, agknowleging that the issues that showed up in Lopez's case — like faulty DNA evidence and unreliable confessions — appear in other cases and hamper the public's trust in the criminal justice system and harm public safety.
He said he hopes this ruling will "move the needle" to repair some trust in the system.
"Today is an important moment not just for the District Attorney's office or Manhattan, but for the entire criminal justice system," he said.
The case of the "Central Park Five" continues to lead discussions around forced confessions and racism in the criminal justice system.