A Voice From Behind Bars

It is axiomatic that at least 99% of those now serving time in prison are innocent. Don’t take my word for it. Ask them.

They will tell you that they are victims of circumstance or that they were framed or that they bear an unfortunate close resemblance to the person who actually committed the crime.

I hear periodically from both men and women doing time in state penal institutions who claim innocence. If I chose, I could spend the remainder of my life investigating their cries of false imprisonment.

I don’t do that for a lot of reasons. However, one letter from a man doing time at Pelican Bay for murder got my attention. It wasn’t his name, Richard Martinez, that jumped out at me. It was two other words: Rampart Division.

Martinez was arrested by detectives working out of Rampart, which does not automatically make him innocent and them guilty, but it does tend to capture one’s attention, given the current climate of scandal.

It’s too bad that a few bad cops have stained the reputation of the many good ones, but that’s the way it is. The name Rampart will be synonymous with cop-evil for years to come.

And a lot of guys in prison are hoping to cash in on that.

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Martinez was 19 and a member of the West 18th Street Gang when he was arrested nine years ago for killing one Victor Ortiz, who was a member of the Crazy Riders, a rival gang. A year later, he was convicted and sentenced to prison for 25 years to life.

A few weeks ago, he wrote me claiming he was a victim of overzealous Rampart officers who targeted him due to his gang affiliation. He says, of course, he was innocent. They all are.

It was, however, worth another step on my part. Martinez suggested I contact his wife and go through the “murder book” she had compiled on his behalf. Her name is Sandra Collins. She’s actually an ex-wife. They were divorced when Martinez was sentenced, but are considering remarriage.

The murder book consists of copies of arrest reports, witness statements and court transcripts contained in boxes and envelopes in a home she shares with their young son in South-Central L.A.

Collins is convinced of Martinez’s innocence. She says she was with him two miles away just four minutes before Ortiz was gunned down. He could not have covered the distance in time to shoot Ortiz.

A man named Ricardo Sanchez was with the murder victim at the time of the shooting. According to a police report, “detectives interviewed victim [Sanchez] and additional witnesses at Rampart station. From their statements, the only suspect observed was a male, black, who was seen shooting a handgun while standing on the sidewalk. . . .”

Martinez, not being black, naturally says it wasn’t him. But other evidence convicted him.

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Both Martinez and Collins have busied themselves since the Rampart revelation writing letters to anyone they think might be of help in getting his case reviewed.

She says she was contacted by Deputy D.A. Daniel Murphy, head of the Rampart task force, who said he was looking into the case. Sandi Gibbons, who is the spokesperson for the D.A., wouldn’t confirm or deny this. She did say, however, that they have received dozens of letters from prison inmates throughout the state and are checking them all out.

Of special concern, she added, are those arrested by cops from the Rampart Division roughly between the years 1994 and 1998. While Martinez’s arrest was in 1991, she still urged him to stay in touch with the D.A.’s office.

Activist attorney Luis Carrillo, who is also looking into some of the cases, has received 15 letters in the past month from prison inmates involved with Rampart. One of them was from Martinez. Carrillo has asked Collins to bring him the so-called murder book to study.

I am always a little skeptical of anyone convicted by a jury who says he didn’t do it. But the use of DNA evidence and the testimony of Rafael Perez do prove that innocent people sometimes are wrongly convicted of crimes, so I reserve judgment.

Not too long ago, celebrated author Norman Mailer rescued a man from prison who thereafter committed murder. I’m not about to risk repeating that same ignoble feat.

I do want to point out, however, a residual effect of the Rampart scandal. We are suddenly awash in convicts who swear they were railroaded by LAPD detectives. Some were and were freed from prison. Now we are all faced with the possibility that many others were similarly imprisoned, but may never be freed.

That rests heavily on the public conscience. If for only that reason, every case, however remote the possibility, ought to be investigated. We’ll all rest easier.

Al Martinez’s column appears Sundays and Wednesdays. He can be reached online at [email protected].