David Henry
Charged with 1st Degree Murder
Wrongfully Convicted of Aggravated Manslaughter
My wife Jackie and I were married for almost 16 years. We got along very well and never fought. On the evening of Tuesday March 29, 2005 Jackie suddenly collapsed and died of an un-determined medical condition (heart attack, brain aneurysm?) ending in a seizure. As she collapsed she hit her neck against a bookcase before falling to the floor.

Immediately I dialled 911. Jackie was still breathing with difficulty during the call, as acknowledged by the dispatcher and a forensic sound analyst. The ambulance went to the wrong house. I ran out and flagged them down.

The first intubation attempt was unsuccessful due to the tube being too large. They were on the scene for approximately 26 minutes.  During the entire time the police did not arrive, they claimed to be at a ‘fight call’; however, an examination of the tape reveals that there wasn’t a fight anywhere at that time.
The inexperienced EMT said he thought the mark on Jackie’s neck looked ‘suspicious’. The police then contacted the County Prosecutor’s Office who termed it a ‘suspicious death’. I asked that an autopsy be performed to determine the exact cause of death, and contacted the Coroner’s office three times to follow-up. The next afternoon the Country Coroner began his report with his conclusion of a ‘suspicious death’. Since Jackie had a mark on her neck from hitting the bookcase, and the damage was aggravated by the failed intubation attempt, he began the autopsy report with the belief that the cause of death was ligature strangulation and the manner of death was homicide.

The Flaws in his conclusions are as follows:
1. There was no evidence that an assault took place. There was no disturbance in the house. Other than the neck wound there were only nominal marks on Jackie. There were no marks at all on me.
2. There was no petechia on the face or in the eyes.
3. The mark was angled upwards and not horizontal as in a ligature strangulation.
4. The hyoid bone was not broken.
5. The wound was not deep or consistent. The thyroid cartilage was not damaged.
6. There was no mark on the other side of the neck, as would be seen in a ligature strangulation.
7. At trial the Coroner testified, “I do not know for certain what happened here”.
Initially they claimed there was DNA from skin under one of Jackie’s fingernails. I asked to be tested but they declined. To my knowledge, no analysis was done on this sample.

A Senior Investigator from the Prosecutor’s Office investigated the ‘homicide’ case. The only information about me was that I had lost my wallet at a homosexual meeting place years before.

My mother and I were ordered to ‘go to the PDI’. The police had murder on their minds and questioned me without reading my Miranda rights. At the trial the Sr. Inv. testified that I was the only suspect. He said they found an ‘unknown fingerprint’. At the trial he admitted they never took any fingerprints.

I was arrested and charged with 1st Degree Murder on May 7, 2005. The trial ended on October 9, 2007. The jury found me not guilty of 1st Degree Murder but guilty of the lesser-included Aggravated Manslaughter. I was sentenced to 22 years imprisonment.

During the trial the County Coroner made deliberate and repeated comments stating that it was my responsibility to provide him with information consistent with his theory of ligature strangulation as the cause of death and homicide as the manner of death. This shifted the burden of proof from the state onto me.

The State committed a Brady violation by not notifying the defense of the existence of Jackie’s heart samples.

A forensic analyst (expert in audio analysis) proved that Jackie was breathing in the background during the first 911 call. The significance is ‘why would someone murder someone else and call 911 for help while the victim was still breathing’? that’s because this wasn’t murder.

What Must Be Done to Prove My Innocence:
1. A thorough examination of the autopsy report, pictures and all tissue samples by a very experienced forensic pathologist will prove my innocence.
2. An attorney licensed and experienced in New Jersey criminal trial and appellate law and practices is needed to present me.
3. Since I spent my entire life’s savings on this and I am living off the subsistence wages from my prison employment, I desperately need financial assistance to help pay for my basic necessities as well as my medication and law books. I am a paralegal student and I will help any attorney to the fullest extent possible.
4. Donations are needed to pay for expert assistance from attorneys, forensic pathologists and other experts to prove my innocence.
In conclusion, there is no proof that my wife Jackie died of a homicide. I am imprisoned because I am a homosexual who loved a woman, had a successful marriage and career, and tried to live a normal life. Please help me to prove that Jackie did not die this way and help clear my name.

David Henry
INM# 597972,  SBI# 36842B
South Woods State Prison
215 South Burlington Road
Bridgeton, NJ 08302-3439
U.S.A.