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Innocents Project: DNA Exonerates Two VA Prisoners Convicted in Rape Case

delaware state court website

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - An organization dedicated to exonerating wrongfully convicted individuals says DNA evidence proves that two men had nothing to do with the rape and beating of a Norfolk woman two decades ago.

The Richmond Times-Dispatchreports that the Innocence Project filed papers Tuesday in the Supreme Court of Virginia arguing that DNA tests prove that Nathaniel E. Epps and Percell F. Warren were wrongfully convicted in the attack. The organization says the evidence available for testing at the time was limited.

Both men were convicted in the rape and beating of a then-40-year-old woman on Feb. 20, 1996. Sixty-five-year-old Epps is serving a 153-year sentence in connection with the case. Warren was serving 160 years before he died behind bars in 2012.

Don Rush is the News Director at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.