The man's murder conviction is overturned

DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN – BROOKLYN DA ERIC Gonzalez announced Thursday that he is overturning the conviction of Keith Roberts, 67, following an investigation by the Conviction Review Unit. who served eight years in prison for second-degree murder. He is the 40th person exonerated by Brooklyn's CRU since its founding in 2014.

Roberts was originally convicted of the 1986 East Flatbush murder of Pierre Sanon based on the testimony of a single witness who identified him as the killer. The victim's family stated in court that they believed the identifying witness had argued with Sanon and was responsible for his death, while Roberts' witnesses testified that he was at a different party the night of the murder. In 1994, the Appellate Division ordered a new trial because of the late disclosure of testimony that favored Roberts' alibi. Roberts agreed to plead guilty to manslaughter in exchange for a reduced sentence that took into account time served, keeping him out of prison.

Roberts addressed the CRU and said he only admitted his guilt to avoid a possible return to prison. After an investigation, the CRU concluded that he was unlikely to have been involved in the crime, noting that the identifying witness's statement was “nonsensical” and that in fact the witness had probably argued with Sanon, as the family believed. The unit also found that Roberts had no motive, did not match other witnesses' description of the shooter and had a strong alibi, and that the police investigation was inadequate, lasted less than 24 hours and was conducted by one officer. not a detective.

“I promised my mother before her death that I would continue to fight for my innocence and honor her struggle and sacrifice to free myself and clear my name,” Roberts wrote in his statement to the CRU, expressing his regret , that he had accepted the plea deal.

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