- In
Officer
Larry Nevers' second trial for murder, a new jury has convicted him
of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced him to 7-15 years in prison.
It was hoped that Nevers, who has already spent four years in the penitentiary,
would be given credit for the time served and freed. Instead, Judge
Ulysses Boykin denied his request for an appeal bond, and he was lead
directly back to his prison cell. This was a devastating blow to the
highly decorated former plainclothes detective.
Here are the facts of the case: late in the night of November 5, 1992,
Nevers, along with his partner Walter Budzyn, was patrolling a dangerous
section of Detroit. While in front of a crack house where known drug
dealers and prostitutes openly bought and sold drugs, they observed
a red Ford Topaz with bullet holes matching the description of a stolen
car.
They asked the driver, Malice Green, to produce his driver's license.
Green was holding a bag of crack cocaine in his hand and was under the
influence of drugs at this time. Green refused to open his hand, kicked
Budzyn, and tried to grab Nevers' gun. In the struggle, Nevers struck
Green with his flashlight. Other officers arrived on the scene. It took
four of them to handcuff Green, who was taken to the hospital to treat
the cuts to his head.
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This should have been the end of the story, but to everyone's astonishment,
Malice Green died in the emergency room. The cause of death was an enlarged
heart due to years of substance abuse, but the case became so politicized
that Nevers was charged with murder for striking Green on the head. Nevers'
original trial was a circus with drug dealers and prostitutes testifying
against him, in addition to the showing of the movie "Malcolm X" to the
jury, which depicts police brutality by white policemen.
The experts testifying on the cause of death were ignored. Detroit Mayor
Coleman Young announced that the "wrong" verdict in the case could cause
riots similar to those in Los Angeles after the Rodney King incident,
since Nevers is white and Malice Green was black. "60 Minutes" did a segment
on the case.
Officer Nevers was convicted of second degree murder and sentenced to
12 to 24 years in prison in the first trial. The new sentencing will require
Larry to spend at least one more year in jail. In the meantime, he has
had another serious blow - doctors have discovered that he has lung cancer.
The Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund (LELDF) supported Nevers in this
second trial and will be assisting him with his appeal. Watch our next
newsletter and Web site (www.leldf.org) for updates on the Nevers case.
See Also:
Read more about this case in the Winter 1998 newsletter.
Send
a letter of encouragement
to Larry Nevers and his family.
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