Man Exonerated After 35 Years of Wrongful Conviction Based on Misidentification

A miscarriage of justice was finally corrected this week when Perry Lott was officially exonerated after spending over 35 years wrongfully imprisoned for a rape and burglary he did not commit. This long-overdue reversal came after post-conviction DNA evidence incontrovertibly excluded Mr. Lott as the perpetrator.

An Erroneous Identification Rests on Shaky Ground

As reported by the Innocence Project, the rape occurred in 1987 when an assailant broke into a woman’s home in Ada, Oklahoma, and sexually assaulted her at gunpoint. The only evidence implicating Mr. Lott was the survivor’s identification of him in a suggestive police lineup.

This identification was problematic for several reasons:

  • The survivor, who is white, only had a brief opportunity to view her attacker in dim lighting. Cross-racial identifications are less reliable.
  • The lineup procedure was intentionally rigged to draw attention to Mr. Lott as the only participant with a gold tooth.
  • Mr. Lott did not match the original physical description provided by the survivor. She described a clean-shaven man, but Mr. Lott had a mustache.
  • Research shows eyewitness misidentification is the leading cause of wrongful convictions, accounting for a staggering 64% of cases.

Despite these red flags, the identification was the entirety of the case against Mr. Lott. He was convicted after only a single day of trial.

DNA Testing Exonerates Perry Lott

Decades later, the Innocence Project succeeded in getting DNA testing performed on the original rape kit. The results categorically excluded Mr. Lott and pointed to another unknown male perpetrator.

This scientific proof of innocence led Mr. Lott to file for vacation of his conviction in 2018. Shockingly, the Ada County District Attorney at the time, Paul Smith, contested this motion despite the evidence. On the eve of an evidentiary hearing where the DNA results would have been presented, DA Smith offered Mr. Lott only a reduced sentence that would allow his release but not overturn his conviction.

After 35 years of professing his innocence, Mr. Lott accepted this compromise just for the chance to be free. But justice remained elusive.

Exoneration Finally Granted by New District Attorney

In 2023, the Innocence Project approached newly elected DA Erik Johnson about re-examining Mr. Lott’s case. After reviewing the record, DA Johnson acknowledged the DNA testing was “favorable” to Mr. Lott and moved to officially clear his name.

Said Mr. Lott:

“I never lost hope that this day would come. I had faith that the truth would prevail — even after 35 long years.”

This case spotlights the life-derailing consequences of misidentification and wrongful conviction, especially for Black defendants who are disproportionately targeted. It also demonstrates the vital role of DNA evidence and District Attorney integrity in correcting these injustices.

Mr. Lott suffered immensely over his three decades of wrongful incarceration, but thankfully, he will now have a chance to move forward with his life. His faith and perseverance have finally been rewarded.