Connecticut to Pay $5.9 Million to Family of Man Wrongly Imprisoned for 23 Years
The state of Connecticut is set to pay nearly $5.9 million to the family of Richard Lapointe, who was wrongly imprisoned for over two decades before being released in 2015. Lapointe, who was diagnosed with Dandy-Walker syndrome, a rare congenital brain malformation, had been convicted of the 1992 murder and rape of an 88-year-old grandmother, Bernice Martin. However, his lawyers and the state attorney general’s office eventually agreed to settle after years of legal battles, despite Lapointe’s wrongful conviction never being officially overturned.
Lapointe, who died in 2020 at the age of 74, was never declared innocent, but his lawyers and the state’s claims commissioner’s office agreed that the settlement was “reasonable and appropriate.” Paul Casteleiro, Lapointe’s attorney, said the award is “a recognition by the state of the wrong it committed in prosecuting and imprisoning an innocent man.”
The case against Lapointe was based on a nearly 10-hour interrogation, in which he was repeatedly asked the same questions and eventually confessed. However, his lawyers argued that his mental disability and the lack of legal representation during the interrogation made his confession coerced and unreliable. The state Supreme Court ruled in 2015 that Lapointe was deprived of a fair trial, leading to his release from prison.
Lapointe’s wrongful conviction had a devastating impact on his life and that of his family. His wife divorced him after his arrest, and he lost contact with his son, who was young at the time. Lapointe spent his remaining years in a nursing home, suffering from dementia, and ultimately died in 2020 after contracting COVID-19. Despite his tragic fate, the award is seen as a step towards justice for Lapointe and his family.
