The Witnesses Who Recanted

At about 2:30 a.m., two gunmen, one with a pistol and one with a shotgun, entered a city bar and opened fire, killing the bartender and two patrons and wounding another. Witnesses described a white car with out-of-state plates and distinctive rear lights. About ten minutes later police stopped a white car carrying three men, including the two defendants, and found a live pistol bullet under a seat and a live shotgun shell in the trunk. At trial two men who had been committing a burglary nearby identified them, and both were convicted and sentenced to life. Years later the two witnesses recanted. The defence then showed that a police lieutenant had promised both witnesses favorable treatment and that this had never been disclosed.