Dallas Morning News

January 11, 2005

Lawyer urges Georgia to drop 1959 case against Dallas man

It's 'a cruel hoax' for ex-con, 76, who may not survive jail stint

Author: DAVID TARRANT; Staff Writer

Calling his client the victim of "a cruel hoax," the lawyer for Robert Coney urged Georgia to drop its 45-year-old case against the Dallas man, who was released from prison in August after spending most of the last four decades in prison.

Mr. Coney, 76, has been in a Dallas County jail cell since his arrest in early December on an old warrant for his 1959 escape from a Georgia prison, where he had been serving an eight- to 10-year sentence for writing forged checks. At the time of his escape, he had served less than a year.

His arrest at his Dallas home came four months after he finally gained his freedom in another case, married his longtime sweetheart and began to get his life in order.

"As it turned out, his release in August was nothing more than a cruel hoax," lawyer David O'Neil said.

Mr. Coney, who is not eligible for bail because of his escape record, faces numerous health problems including increasing blindness and might not survive another stint in jail, Mr. O'Neil said.

"He's not in any condition to be a further threat to society," he said.

In a case that attracted international attention, Mr. Coney walked out of a Lufkin jail a free man in August after an East ! Texas judge dismissed his 1962 conviction and life sentence for a robbery in Angelina County, saying his confession probably had been coerced by deputies using physical force.

The judge, David V. Wilson, also found that a 30-year-old court order should have expunged those criminal charges. But Mr. Coney was never told about the 1973 court order, and it apparently was lost in legal bureaucracy.

Meanwhile, Mr. Coney's life had become an odyssey of prison escapes and recaptures. After escaping from a Texas prison in 1962, Mr. Coney spent the next four decades in prison or on the lam. He was picked up several times for passing counterfeit checks - usually for food, he said in August after his release.

In 2003, after serving out his last prison sentence in Mississippi, Mr. Coney was immediately picked up by Texas authorities, who returned him to Huntsville to finish his life sentence. He was there for about a year when his successful appeal gained him the freed! om that had long eluded him. Shortly after his release, Mr. Coney file d a $25 million lawsuit against Angelina County.

Mr. Coney thought he had cleared his record in Georgia after he received assurances that he was not wanted there, Mr. O'Neil said. The Huntsville lawyer held a news conference at the downtown Dallas office of John Dejean, a legal aide who helped with Mr. Coney's release and his suit against Angelina County.

Mr. O'Neil produced a legal document, dated Feb. 18, 2004, from the Baldwin County, Ga., Superior Court indicating that Georgia authorities had no interest in Mr. Coney.

"We have no hold, no desire to ever see him again," Baldwin County Assistant District Attorney Stephen A. Bradley said, according to a court transcript of a hearing on Mr. Coney's legal status. "In fact, if I had my way, he would not return to Baldwin County under any circumstances," the prosecutor said.

Mr. O'Neil said he doesn't know why Georgia issued an arrest warrant, and he hasn't been able to get answers from authorities there! .

Phone calls to the Baldwin County, Ga., district attorney's office were not returned Monday.

"We are contesting the extradition hearing in the hopes that someone will see what's going on," Mr. O'Neil said. "We find it difficult to believe that anyone would want to bring him back to Georgia."

In addition to poor health, other mitigating factors cited by Mr. O'Neil include Mr. Coney's military service and his model record as a prisoner.

While an inmate at Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman, Miss., where he served 20 years, Mr. Coney received a letter of commendation for his work managing an adult-education program for prisoners.

He also ran an alcohol- and drug-counseling program and even persuaded inmates to contribute to famine relief in Ethiopia. Under the program, inmates would donate a meal or an hour of work, which would be converted to a payment.

Mr. Coney served in the Navy during World War II and later in the Army in Kore! a, Mr. O'Neil said. "He fought in two wars. He was defending our const itutional rights. ... It's time to put this to rest and let him go home for what time he has left."

Shirley Coney, whose wedding ceremony with Mr. Coney had taken place in the same downtown legal office five months ago, sat quietly for most of the news conference before speaking up.

"Naturally, I want him home," she said. "We were together for four months, and all of a sudden he's gone again."

E-mail dtarrant@dallasnews.com