Kori Ellis
07-13-2005, 11:16 PM
Court grants new hearings for man convicted of robbing Robinson
(Published Wednesday, July 13, 2005 10:05:12 AM CDT)
By Ryan J. Foley
Associated Press
MADISON, Wis. - The state Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered hearings to allow a man convicted of robbing then-Milwaukee Bucks star Glenn Robinson at gunpoint in 1999 to present new evidence supporting his claims of innocence.
If true, the court said the claim raises questions about whether the wrong man has been sent to prison for the crime in which the NBA player said his life flashed in front of his eyes in a tavern parking lot.
Robinson, the No. 1 draft pick in the 1994 draft who now plays for the San Antonio Spurs, was robbed at gunpoint as he left a Milwaukee sports bar shortly after midnight on Sept. 28, 1999. A pair of thieves took $40,000 in valuables from Robinson, including cash, a Rolex watch and other jewelry, before fleeing in a car.
Lisimba Love, 32, was convicted of armed robbery as a habitual offender in 2000 after a trial and is serving a sentence of 44 years in prison. An alleged accomplice was acquitted after a jury deadlocked.
The hearings will focus on two issues: whether Love's defense attorney should have sought information from a man who claimed he had firsthand knowledge that somebody else was the culprit and the veracity of a prisoner's claim that another inmate - who happens to be Love's cousin - has boasted of the robbery.
The hearings, which have not been scheduled, could result in a new trial for Love, who has maintained his innocence and claimed he was picking up a friend's mother on the night of the robbery.
A circuit court and later a state appeals court had turned down Love's appeals for a new trial, agreeing with prosecutors that the claims were not admissible in court or credible.
The state Supreme Court reversed the decisions Tuesday, saying the new evidence, combined with eye witness discrepancies, could cast doubt on Love's guilt if verified.
Love's conviction was based largely on testimony from Robinson, who picked Love out of a photo lineup and testified he was certain he was the robber who pointed a gun to his head.
But Robinson told police immediately after the attack his assailant was "around six two, 170 pounds and with a mini-afro, dark complected." Love has lighter skin, weighs 245 pounds and has a major scar on his face.
Love also says he has an affidavit from an inmate who claims Floyd Lindell Smith Jr. boasted of robbing Robinson, who was traded to the Atlanta Hawks in 2002, and shared specific details of the crime.
Smith, who was arrested for carrying a concealed weapon one week after the robbery, also matches Robinson's description of the robber: he has a dark complexion, weighs 170 pounds, and has a mini-afro. Smith, who is Love's cousin and was living at the same address at the time of the robbery, told a detective that he did not commit the crime.
Dissenting from the court's five-member majority, Justices David Prosser and Jon Wilcox cast doubt on Love's claims, noting the career criminal had asked people to lie for him in the past.
(Published Wednesday, July 13, 2005 10:05:12 AM CDT)
By Ryan J. Foley
Associated Press
MADISON, Wis. - The state Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered hearings to allow a man convicted of robbing then-Milwaukee Bucks star Glenn Robinson at gunpoint in 1999 to present new evidence supporting his claims of innocence.
If true, the court said the claim raises questions about whether the wrong man has been sent to prison for the crime in which the NBA player said his life flashed in front of his eyes in a tavern parking lot.
Robinson, the No. 1 draft pick in the 1994 draft who now plays for the San Antonio Spurs, was robbed at gunpoint as he left a Milwaukee sports bar shortly after midnight on Sept. 28, 1999. A pair of thieves took $40,000 in valuables from Robinson, including cash, a Rolex watch and other jewelry, before fleeing in a car.
Lisimba Love, 32, was convicted of armed robbery as a habitual offender in 2000 after a trial and is serving a sentence of 44 years in prison. An alleged accomplice was acquitted after a jury deadlocked.
The hearings will focus on two issues: whether Love's defense attorney should have sought information from a man who claimed he had firsthand knowledge that somebody else was the culprit and the veracity of a prisoner's claim that another inmate - who happens to be Love's cousin - has boasted of the robbery.
The hearings, which have not been scheduled, could result in a new trial for Love, who has maintained his innocence and claimed he was picking up a friend's mother on the night of the robbery.
A circuit court and later a state appeals court had turned down Love's appeals for a new trial, agreeing with prosecutors that the claims were not admissible in court or credible.
The state Supreme Court reversed the decisions Tuesday, saying the new evidence, combined with eye witness discrepancies, could cast doubt on Love's guilt if verified.
Love's conviction was based largely on testimony from Robinson, who picked Love out of a photo lineup and testified he was certain he was the robber who pointed a gun to his head.
But Robinson told police immediately after the attack his assailant was "around six two, 170 pounds and with a mini-afro, dark complected." Love has lighter skin, weighs 245 pounds and has a major scar on his face.
Love also says he has an affidavit from an inmate who claims Floyd Lindell Smith Jr. boasted of robbing Robinson, who was traded to the Atlanta Hawks in 2002, and shared specific details of the crime.
Smith, who was arrested for carrying a concealed weapon one week after the robbery, also matches Robinson's description of the robber: he has a dark complexion, weighs 170 pounds, and has a mini-afro. Smith, who is Love's cousin and was living at the same address at the time of the robbery, told a detective that he did not commit the crime.
Dissenting from the court's five-member majority, Justices David Prosser and Jon Wilcox cast doubt on Love's claims, noting the career criminal had asked people to lie for him in the past.