Detective not immune from civil rights claims brought by America’s longest serving exoneree

Glynn Simmons served more than 48 years in prison for the murder of a liquor store clerk before he was exonerated in 2023.(CN) — A federal judge in Oklahoma Tuesday declined to throw out civil rights claims against an Oklahoma City police detective accused of fabricating evidence that resulted in the 1975 conviction of Glynn Simmons, who is believed to be the longest-serving exoneree in American history.Simmons spent almost half a century in prison after he was convicted for the 1974 murder of a liquor store clerk who was shot and killed during a robbery in Edmond, Oklahoma. Belinda Brown, a witness who survived the robbery, testified at trial she had identified Simmons in police lineups. Simmons had been arrested based on suspected involvement in unrelated robberies in Oklahoma City. Other witnesses, however, testified that at the time of the shooting Simmons was 200 miles away in Harvey, Louisiana.After Simmons’ conviction was overturned in 2023 based on suppression of exculpatory evidence, Simmons sued the city of Edmond and Oklahoma City, along with Oklahoma City detective Claude Shobert and the estate of a deceased Edmond police detective, whom Simmons claims fabricated evidence against him and hid exculpatory evidence related to the lineups.On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Bernard Jones declined to grant Shobert qualified immunity against some of Simmons’ claims. The Donald Trump appointee ruled a reasonable jury could find Shobert violated Simmons’ constitutional rights by fabricating evidence and suppressing exculpatory evidence. Although Simmons claims he was not in a Feb. 8, 1975, lineup, a report by Shobert indicated Brown picked Simmons out of that lineup. Jones found that created a genuine fact issue as to whether Shobert’s report constitutes intentionally fabricated evidence.“Evidence showing that Shobert fabricated the results of the Feb. 8, 1975, lineup would clearly be favorable to Simmons and likely could have altered whether Simmons was charged and/or convicted in the criminal case, thereby causing prejudice to Simmons as a result,” Jones wrote.Attorneys for Simmons and Shobert did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the ruling.In February, the 10th Circuit overturned Jones’ prior ruling declining to grant summary judgment to Shobert, who has claimed he has no independent recollection of the investigation. Jones found that because the events at issue occurred more than 50 years ago and key witnesses are either deceased or cannot recall the events in question, there are almost no undisputed facts in the case.“Consequently, it will be up to a jury, after hearing all of the evidence and testimony of the witnesses, to determine what the facts are and ultimately who is entitled to judgment in their favor,” Jones wrote.In overturning the prior ruling, a three-judge panel of the 10th Circuit found Jones had not conducted a sufficient qualified immunity analysis and sent the case back for fuller review.Simmons settled his claims against the city of Edmond and the estate of Edmond police detective Anthony Garrett in 2024, with the city agreeing to pay him $7.15 million.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads