VIDEO: Former TX Officer Cleared of Rape Conviction After Serving 21 Years in Prison
A former Fort Worth, TX, police officer has been exonerated after spending 21 years in prison after being accused of raping a young girl.
Brian Franklin was sentenced to life in prison in the alleged 1994 rape of a 13-year-old girl. He got out in May when the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted him a new trial. That trial concluded on Friday with a verdict of "not guilty."
Franklin was granted a new trial when the court ruled that he was denied due process because his alleged victim lied under oath.
Two years ago in a 2014 hearing, the alleged victim, the daughter of a friend, admitted that she lied in part of her testimony but remained adamant that Franklin raped her.
Franklin’s family was there when he got out of prison in May and was in court on Friday when the jury in his second trial delivered a verdict of "not guilty.”
“I knew it was going to come,” the exonerated man told Fox 4 News. “I wasn't surprised." Franklin has maintained his innocence since his arrest.
“I had the trifecta against me: I was an innocent man, I was a former police officer and I was accused of raping a child.” He said.
John Peterson, the accuser's stepbrother, feared testifying in the first trial but came forward about 10 years ago. He said the girl confided in him days after the alleged assault and said that she made it all up.
Peterson testified on Franklin's behalf this week and was happy to help clear Franklin's name.
Franklin's attorney, Dick DeGuerin, says he is exonerated under the law but wants to expunge the charge and will file a declaration of innocence. He also plans to sue for damages.
