JJ Velazquez exonerated in murder of retired NYPD cop after 25 years | Comments

NEW YORK – More than 25 years after a Bronx man was charged with killing a retired NYPD cop during a robbery, his conviction was overturned Monday using updated DNA testing.

Jon-Adrian “JJ” Velazquez, 48, entered Manhattan Supreme Criminal Court already a free man, having had his sentence commuted in 2021. But after the hearing ended amid applauding supporters, he clenched his fist and later wore a hat with the words “End of a Mistake” emblazoned on it.

Before being exonerated, Velazquez told Variety that he would finally have the “scarlet letter” removed from his chest.

“It’s much deeper than discrimination,” he said. “It amounts to compromising someone’s human dignity. I get some of my dignity back.”

Outside the courtroom, Velazquez's mother recounted the years she spent visiting her son in prison during the holidays with his two young children in tow, and putting a lit match in a cupcake instead of a candle for every birthday.

“It was important for her to know who her father was because he was an innocent man who was wrongfully imprisoned,” Maria Velazquez said

“This is what they did to us – they tortured us, they made us suffer. But today it’s over.”

Velazquez greeted his supporters after walking outside the courtroom holding hands with his mother and girlfriend.

“Who am I? I am a very happy man. “I’m lucky that so many people believed in me,” Velasquez told ABC 7 News.

“The most valuable commodity in this world is not gold or platinum or even cash, it is time, because human life is measured by the time we have on this earth.”

On January 27, 1998, two men robbing a betting shop in Harlem got into a gunfight with retired NYPD detective Albert Ward, 59, killing him. A man who identified himself as “Tee” was said to have been the perpetrator.

Velazquez, then 22, was quickly arrested along with a suspected accomplice, 34-year-old Derry Daniels. In 1999, Velazquez was found guilty of murder and sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Evidence withheld

In 2017, Velazquez's attorney, Robert Gottlieb, called for a new trial, saying the Manhattan district attorney intentionally withheld from his client's trial lawyers a document of an interview with Daniels' father, who saw the real killer shortly before the attack.

The file “provided a clear description of a third perpetrator, not Jon-Adrian Velazquez, whom the father observed with his son Derry just hours before the murder and which matched the accurate description of the shooter given by eyewitnesses. says the 2017 filing.

Daniels, who pleaded guilty to robbery, was sentenced to just twelve years in prison for his role. Velazquez says Daniels was a stranger to him.

In 2021, Velazquez's sentence was commuted by then-Gov. Cuomo.

But it was newly discovered DNA evidence that ultimately gave Velazquez his life back. In 2022, the case was reopened for re-investigation by the Post-Conviction Justice Unit, which used new methods to test DNA found on a betting slip administered by “Tee”. It was determined that Velazquez's DNA was not found on the note.

Since his release from prison, Velazquez has kept busy. He portrayed himself in a 2023 film called “Sing Sing,” about a Shakespeare production at the infamous prison in Ossining, New York, and worked as an activist. He even met with President Biden to discuss legal reform of the justice system.

“JJ Velazquez has lived in the shadow of his conviction for more than 25 years, and I hope that today begins a new chapter for him,” said District Attorney Alvin Bragg, adding that the prosecution's Post-Conviction Justice Unit has cleared 10 convictions renewed investigations since its founding in 2022.

During Monday's hearing, Judge Abraham Clott noted that a celebration was in order.

While Velazquez was grateful for his release, he said there are many others like him locked up and posted on social media that it wasn't just his victory.

“Let’s make sure this story inspires change and prevents further miscarriages of justice from occurring,” he said. “Together we can shine a light on the importance of truth and the strength of the human spirit.”