State of Colorado v. Deshawn Jones

Denver, Colorado defendant was charged with two counts sexual assault and one count of robbery.



Deshawn Jones, age 26, was charged with sexually assaulting a woman on October 2, 2007 in the Triangle Park in Denver.



The victim claimed that she was attacked by a woman and two men. The woman knocked her down and then one of the men pulled her pants down and rapped her and a second man forced her to engage in oral sex.



She was taken to a hospital by a friend and forensic samples were taken for a rape kit.



On April 29, 2010, Deshawn Jones was arrested and charged based on a DNA match from the FBI database.



Jones claimed that he and his uncle had consensual sex with the woman in exchange for drugs.

Jones elected to plead guilt class four felony charge of sexual assault in return for a sentence of probation for 10 years to life to avoid at 16 years to life prison sentence. He was classified as a sexually violent predator resulting in the termination of his relationship with his nine children.



On October 6, 2011, Jones refused to admit that he had, in fact, committed the crimes and shortly thereafter his probation was terminated and he was incarcerated. He was sentenced to 6 years to life.



In 2012, Jones filed a post conviction relief petition seeking to have his conviction vacated.



A private practice attorney was appointed to represent Jones and he interviewed the alleged victim, who told him that she had sex with Jones and his uncle in exchange for some crack cocaine.



The victim was interrogated under oath and testified that he made up the store to avoid being kicked out of the shelter where she was living. The shelter had a curfew and she had failed to return in time.



The Denver County District Attorney's Office conducted an investigation and agreed to vacate the judgment and sentence on August 21, 2015 and he was released from prison on August 24, 2015.



Jones sought compensation for being wrongfully incarcerated but was denied compensation by Denver County District Judge Brian Whitney because the alleged crime arose from the commission of a crime.