47. Malcolm Alexander is interviewed by Emma Morris of the Jeremy Bamber Innocence Campaign — Transcript

Full transcript

1. 0:00[Music]
2. 0:10[Music]
3. 0:16[Music]
4. 0:38welcome to this jeremy bamba and white
5. 0:40house farm podcast i'm emma morris pr
6. 0:43coordinator for the jeremy bamba
7. 0:45innocence campaign and i am very excited
8. 0:48to be joined today all the way from
9. 0:50louisiana in the united states malcolm
10. 0:53alexander malcolm welcome and thank you
11. 0:56for joining me today so now for those of
12. 0:59you don't know malcolm was sentenced to
13. 1:01life without parole in 1980
14. 1:04for the rape of a woman in louisiana
15. 1:07and malcolm spent
16. 1:0938 years incarcerated before finally
17. 1:14being exonerated in 2018
18. 1:17so malcolm is an absolutely horrific
19. 1:20story so could you give us a bit of
20. 1:22background about how you ended up being
21. 1:25arrested charged and ultimately found
22. 1:27guilty of a crime you clearly had
23. 1:29absolutely no involvement in
24. 1:32all dealing with identification thing
25. 1:34they have an old saying here where they
26. 1:37say all black people looks alike and in
27. 1:40my case they said i look like the man
28. 1:43who actually had committed a rape
29. 1:45against the victim
30. 1:46and uh the evidence that they use
31. 1:49against me was totally all
32. 1:52identification evidence and there was
33. 1:54even evidence by every show where she
34. 1:57didn't identify me as was being
35. 2:00testified to
36. 2:01but they still went on and convicted me
37. 2:04and then you have to look at i have what
38. 2:06they call
39. 2:07all white jewelry on top of being the
40. 2:10only um black mia in the courtroom at
41. 2:13the time or on a black person outside of
42. 2:15my family area
43. 2:17that um
44. 2:18he had this white female as saying that
45. 2:21i was the one that raped her and and the
46. 2:24weird thing about it all of it was that
47. 2:27it wasn't so much that she picked me out
48. 2:29of the lineup it was that the police
49. 2:33or the detective was the one that really
50. 2:35suggested i might be the perpetrator
51. 2:39right yeah
52. 2:41yeah didn't she initially she wasn't
53. 2:43sure was she when she she seemed to get
54. 2:46more sure as time went on which she's
55. 2:49just recognizing the picture she's seen
56. 2:51she's seen of you isn't she so she
57. 2:53wasn't first was she
58. 2:56yes ma'am correctly
59. 2:58by me being in on several different
60. 3:00lineup the only one that comes to
61. 3:03reappearing and reappearing
62. 3:06her unsure became to positive because
63. 3:10now you're constantly seeing the same
64. 3:12face in each lineup that you being shown
65. 3:19somewhere in there formerly saying that
66. 3:22yes this is the man that raped me
67. 3:25do you think the police
68. 3:28believed it was you or do you think they
69. 3:29just wanted to convict somebody quickly
70. 3:32of of what was you know ultimately a
71. 3:34brutal crime
72. 3:36i just think they wanted to convict
73. 3:38someone
74. 3:39they know it wasn't me i even was
75. 3:42offered a plea bargain and by me knowing
76. 3:44that i didn't do it i wouldn't uh accept
77. 3:47the plea bargain
78. 3:49i stood on my innocent and i said i
79. 3:51still stand today on it
80. 3:54absolutely absolutely and
81. 3:56how long was the trial
82. 4:00we could say we had a one-day trial
83. 4:02i think we started around about
84. 4:05some time that morning around about nine
85. 4:08ten o'clock that morning and we finish
86. 4:10up around about four o'clock
87. 4:14so you were
88. 4:15convicted and sentenced to life without
89. 4:19the possibility of parole on
90. 4:22a witness statement saying initially
91. 4:27i'm not sure but i think it might be him
92. 4:29she became sure over time and you would
93. 4:32you were given life without parole
94. 4:34on a hearing that lasted
95. 4:36just a few hours
96. 4:38just just a few hours
97. 4:42you know you got these
98. 4:44you got to consider we broke for lunch
99. 4:46at noon and but by the time we made it
100. 4:49back
101. 4:50and they uh concluded
102. 4:52and they went deliberated came back and
103. 4:55i was guilty it was just all in one day
104. 4:58and the show how things were so really
105. 5:00messed up in my case that i was finished
106. 5:04it got a time period that you have to
107. 5:06wait after the trial to be sentenced but
108. 5:09i was finished before that time period
109. 5:11was up so they wind up have to bring me
110. 5:14back after a couple of years to dismiss
111. 5:18my life sentence and resentence me again
112. 5:21to the same life
113. 5:23wow
114. 5:24that's horrendous
115. 5:26ah thank you malcolm
116. 5:29so malcolm it it took 38 years 38 long
117. 5:33years for you to finally attain your
118. 5:36justice
119. 5:38why was it so hard for you to get get
120. 5:39your voice heard you know what were the
121. 5:41stumbling blocks because i think even
122. 5:43more tragically in this case the
123. 5:45evidence
124. 5:46was there from the very beginning that
125. 5:48you didn't commit this crime
126. 5:52yes ma'am well the thing is when i first
127. 5:54was convicted they didn't have what they
128. 5:56called dna
129. 5:58and and and in my in my filing in my
130. 6:02appealing i was constantly fighting
131. 6:04against on the identification itself
132. 6:07this show where the identification was
133. 6:10painted it was thought that was
134. 6:11suggested
135. 6:12you know and i couldn't get any headway
136. 6:15i was constantly being denied on that
137. 6:17and so when dna finally came out then i
138. 6:21said all right this is a new avenue
139. 6:23because there never was any blood
140. 6:25comparison work done in my case as well
141. 6:27you know they went to consider they went
142. 6:30to saying about all the evidence was uh
143. 6:32used up during analyzation of it and
144. 6:35stuff like this it already turned
145. 6:36whether or not it was uh spermatozoa and
146. 6:40things that nature that you know whether
147. 6:42it was semen or whatever but the thing
148. 6:44my my main thing was when the dna come
149. 6:48out then all right i have a whole new
150. 6:51avenue
151. 6:52of approach and i have a whole new i'd
152. 6:54say a direction to go in
153. 6:57and so when i went to writing pertaining
154. 7:00to
155. 7:01just any
156. 7:02uh how you say
157. 7:04material or any evidence that was
158. 7:06collected at the scene of the crime i
159. 7:09was constantly being told that all the
160. 7:12evidence has been destroyed
161. 7:16you know and and
162. 7:20well
163. 7:20and from that i never that still didn't
164. 7:23deter me it did not stop me from filing
165. 7:26action about the evidence
166. 7:30and for the and and you can see
167. 7:33for the past
168. 7:35uh
169. 7:35[Music]
170. 7:3730
171. 7:3935 years
172. 7:42because then
173. 7:43i got out in on 2018
174. 7:48the evidence was found
175. 7:50in 2000
176. 7:552015 yeah 2015
177. 7:582016 that they finally found
178. 8:02the evidence that was that they finally
179. 8:04found evidence that was actually uh
180. 8:06pertaining to my case
181. 8:08in uh
182. 8:10in
183. 8:11the coalition in jefferson parish uh
184. 8:15evidence room
185. 8:17right but anytime
186. 8:19yes ma'am anytime before that there was
187. 8:22constantly uh
188. 8:23saying that all the evidence was
189. 8:26destroyed i even received a letter for
190. 8:29the custodian
191. 8:30of the evidence department
192. 8:32telling me
193. 8:34that the evidence was it was destroyed
194. 8:36prematurely accidentally
195. 8:41and it wasn't because you found it
196. 8:45exactly
197. 8:47and that's my advice to anyone
198. 8:49do not never give up
199. 8:51just because they say something that
200. 8:54don't mean that it's that
201. 8:56you know i learned that because not
202. 8:57everybody in the justice system is
203. 9:00really out to do their job
204. 9:04it's a thing
205. 9:05it's a thing of um
206. 9:08uh you say luck it's a thing of prayer
207. 9:10being answered you know it's a faith to
208. 9:13god
209. 9:14that
210. 9:15someone
211. 9:16will get the job to do their job not
212. 9:20just there to get a check or anything
213. 9:22like this here but to actually be there
214. 9:25and be dedicated to the job
215. 9:27that's why i have to add this in that's
216. 9:29what makes a difference with gel y'all
217. 9:32are dedicated to innocent project
218. 9:35all are dedicated
219. 9:39time and time again disclosure of
220. 9:42evidence is is a major factor in
221. 9:44miscarriages of justice cases we're
222. 9:47still fighting disclosure in jeremy's
223. 9:49case
224. 9:50with three court orders
225. 9:53uh compelling essex police to hand over
226. 9:57documents evidence exhibits and they
227. 10:01still refuse they will not hand them
228. 10:03over and you know it's so frustrating
229. 10:05that you're hearing your story
230. 10:07evidence has gone missing then it turns
231. 10:09up you know it's a it's a very familiar
232. 10:12familiar story but thank goodness that
233. 10:15some like you say somebody did do their
234. 10:16job and that that dna was found did was
235. 10:20there ever a time where in in the 38
236. 10:22years where you felt
237. 10:24you know you know you you couldn't fight
238. 10:26or you was there ever a time where you
239. 10:28thought
240. 10:29i'm gonna give up i can't do this
241. 10:32no ma'am
242. 10:33no ma'am at now time i know i didn't do
243. 10:37it
244. 10:38and like to say
245. 10:40in the bible the truth will prevail
246. 10:43and this is why i'm actually here today
247. 10:46and like i said my advice to anyone
248. 10:48that's out there never give up never
249. 10:51stop
250. 10:52um the law you know it's only gonna work
251. 10:54for certain people at a certain time
252. 10:57but at the same time
253. 10:59you know
254. 11:00somebody's going to step in and say
255. 11:03this is the right way that this supposed
256. 11:05to go and that's going to be your prayer
257. 11:08your answer to your prayer
258. 11:10yeah
259. 11:11fantastic thank you
260. 11:14so malcolm obviously 2018 you were
261. 11:17completely exonerated dna evidence
262. 11:20proved that you were not the perpetrator
263. 11:23of this rape you spent 38 years
264. 11:26you know from your from a young man um
265. 11:29in your early 20s
266. 11:31to your late 50s incarcerated for
267. 11:34something you didn't do
268. 11:36i'm assuming you you how much
269. 11:38compensation did you get i'm guessing
270. 11:40you must have got millions and millions
271. 11:41and millions of dollars for such a an
272. 11:43outrageous miscarriage of justice
273. 11:47no ma'am i didn't get millions millions
274. 11:49of dollars actually i didn't get a
275. 11:50dollar the only money that i actually
276. 11:53received was the money that i was able
277. 11:55to see
278. 11:57working in an institution for four cents
279. 11:59an hour
280. 12:01from that
281. 12:02i had to come out get a job
282. 12:04and work to get my life together best i
283. 12:07can
284. 12:08but
285. 12:09just because on dna proved you're
286. 12:12innocent
287. 12:12you know all the time just get money
288. 12:15like that a lot of people be underneath
289. 12:16the impression that you do but that's a
290. 12:19false impression
291. 12:21now as that as stand today you know i
292. 12:24went to work six months after being free
293. 12:28that that is is diabolical it's
294. 12:31absolutely appalling that your
295. 12:34you know your country has treated you so
296. 12:37so badly for 38 years locked you up for
297. 12:40a crime you didn't commit and then you
298. 12:42know and i know it's about the money
299. 12:44it's about being with your family and
300. 12:45your loved ones but ultimately you've
301. 12:47been denied a
302. 12:48a career you've been denied for 38 years
303. 12:53a means to
304. 12:54make make a career for yourself and earn
305. 12:56all the money for yourself and that that
306. 12:58should be the least you're entitled to
307. 13:00from from the state i think people will
308. 13:02be really surprised and shocked to hear
309. 13:05that that you haven't received a penny
310. 13:07in or a dime in compensation
311. 13:10that's that's terrible
312. 13:12please tell me about it because
313. 13:15you have to understand
314. 13:17a man coming out of an institution who's
315. 13:20been there long as i have
316. 13:22you know and i'd say it's innocence
317. 13:25is
318. 13:26is hard
319. 13:28because
320. 13:29he have to get over the mental aspect of
321. 13:33actually being there for that many years
322. 13:35but something he didn't do and so now he
323. 13:38had been placed out there in society
324. 13:41with little to no help you know outside
325. 13:44that actually comes from anderson
326. 13:45project people such as yourself is that
327. 13:48he's trying to put his life back he's
328. 13:50trying to put his life back together
329. 13:51because 38 years is a there's a period
330. 13:54of time that a person from actually
331. 13:56being a retired offer job you know he
332. 13:58actually
333. 13:59his you know his home was the vehicle
334. 14:02you know things in his life were being
335. 14:04been accomplished in in his uh later
336. 14:07years in life that you know and me and
337. 14:10the conversation will actually kind of
338. 14:12like put me right there but it was never
339. 14:15erased
340. 14:16what i actually endured for them 38
341. 14:18years well absolutely absolutely and and
342. 14:21ultimately you had to come out
343. 14:24back where you very very first started
344. 14:26um as a as a 21 year old trying to
345. 14:30make a career
346. 14:34in my late 50s exactly exactly right
347. 14:37you know
348. 14:38right now i should actually be consider
349. 14:40retiring off a job i make 62 i make 62
350. 14:44next month over in december
351. 14:47which is december
352. 14:48and uh and a man being 62
353. 14:5260 let's say 65
354. 14:55you know you normally will work up to
355. 14:56you about 65 yeah but i'm starting out
356. 14:59as a man right now
357. 15:01as you would say in his 20s just coming
358. 15:05out of high school
359. 15:06and i'm i'm like i started when i got
360. 15:09out at 58
361. 15:11i start working
362. 15:13uh
363. 15:14actually i started working before i
364. 15:15turned 59
365. 15:17because i got out in january
366. 15:20and six months right
367. 15:22before i actually turned 59 i had to
368. 15:25start i had to start back working
369. 15:27because like i said i didn't receive no
370. 15:28conversation
371. 15:29and my family
372. 15:31they was there very supportive and
373. 15:33everything on me but
374. 15:35i come from a life where i depended on
375. 15:38me to take care of me even though i was
376. 15:41living inside the institution but you
377. 15:44could say room and board are free but
378. 15:46it's it's not as free as a lot of people
379. 15:48think because this time off your life
380. 15:51especially if you're innocent that you
381. 15:52is paying for this [ __ ] i'm paying for
382. 15:54this with my life i'm paying for this
383. 15:56with for my freedom so now
384. 16:00you say
385. 16:01actually 38 years later i'm 58
386. 16:04so now i'm coming out to try to catch up
387. 16:08on
388. 16:10some type of uh how you say stable
389. 16:13ability
390. 16:14you know
391. 16:15go and get a job they're trying to get
392. 16:18some foundation underneath me and
393. 16:20without no conversation that uh actually
394. 16:23it hurts
395. 16:24it hurts because
396. 16:26i have
397. 16:27unforeseen expensive
398. 16:30is even like the vehicle you know it's
399. 16:33like what if the uh transmission go out
400. 16:35what if the motor uh what if i catch a
401. 16:38flat you know just common things in life
402. 16:41that people actually have set aside
403. 16:43money and prepared themselves for that
404. 16:46i'm at this age at this stage is trying
405. 16:49to do that
406. 16:51yeah
407. 16:52yeah it's absolutely scandalous that
408. 16:54that you've been treated that way
409. 16:55malcolm
410. 16:57right
411. 16:59so what about now malcolm i mean you've
412. 17:01been out since 2000 2018
413. 17:04um
414. 17:05what's life like for you now how are you
415. 17:07how have you coped with with obviously
416. 17:09the huge injustice that had happened to
417. 17:12you
418. 17:14well
419. 17:16i'm not bitter
420. 17:18and the reason i'm not bitter because
421. 17:20one i have been reunited with my family
422. 17:22and everything
423. 17:24and two
424. 17:25that they have people such as y'all that
425. 17:28i mean you know for a person to really
426. 17:31you know
427. 17:33how you say
428. 17:34be mad with the world
429. 17:36over what happened to him but it wasn't
430. 17:39the world that did it it just only was a
431. 17:41few few people handful of people you
432. 17:43know it was a system
433. 17:45which is a broken system but
434. 17:48the thing is
435. 17:50now
436. 17:51it's like it's just taking one day at a
437. 17:53time you know one step here one step
438. 17:56there
439. 17:56and i just try to focus in on the main
440. 17:59things you know in life you know i'm me
441. 18:02making sure you know i have a roof over
442. 18:04my head something to eat you know
443. 18:07being trying to put myself in a position
444. 18:09where i'm comfortable as possible
445. 18:12fantastic how did it i mean you when you
446. 18:15came out um you know i i saw i saw the
447. 18:18video of you you're hugging your your
448. 18:20son
449. 18:21as a free man for the first time since
450. 18:23he was what two years old how did you
451. 18:27oh that felt wonderful
452. 18:30and to be honest with you actually the
453. 18:31first day that i stepped out of the uh
454. 18:34courtroom out of the building and stuff
455. 18:36like this yeah it was like really
456. 18:38stepping into a light
457. 18:40you know i was like blinded you know i
458. 18:43don't know it looks like the lighting
459. 18:45inside the prison is dimmer than the
460. 18:48lighting that is out in the uh society
461. 18:51because i was blind it's like this a new
462. 18:53life this a new beginning and the bu
463. 18:56reunited with my son after so many years
464. 18:59it was it was like unbelievable you know
465. 19:02i have spoken with him on the phone me
466. 19:04he was coming to see me here and there
467. 19:06and it always was one of the questions
468. 19:08that he asked me that when you're coming
469. 19:10home when you're coming home you know
470. 19:12and sometimes you know it was hard to
471. 19:14answer sometimes i didn't answer you
472. 19:17know not not giving them a direct quick
473. 19:20uh answer but
474. 19:22actually to be able to hold him in my
475. 19:24arm even as a man you know i still could
476. 19:28remember him as my baby you know as my
477. 19:31child
478. 19:32yeah
479. 19:33oh you're a remarkable man malcolm
480. 19:36really if if you could obviously jeremy
481. 19:38um has been in prison for 36 years so
482. 19:42um and if he's still there in two years
483. 19:44we absolutely hope he's not but
484. 19:46he'll have equaled your your time in
485. 19:48prison if if you could give him one
486. 19:51piece of advice on
487. 19:53the outside world when we when we get
488. 19:56him home what what would that be
489. 20:00remember one thing i believe
490. 20:02you just can't accept the fact that
491. 20:05y'all did get him out
492. 20:08and now he is the free man
493. 20:11he could go and do anything that he want
494. 20:14to do it's actually true yell
495. 20:17that actually helps him to readjust to
496. 20:20society
497. 20:22never never leave the family stay within
498. 20:25the family
499. 20:27fantastic
500. 20:28that that's great
501. 20:30um
502. 20:31malcolm it's been an absolute pleasure
503. 20:33to talk to you you are a remarkable
504. 20:37very brave wonderful man and i just want
505. 20:40to say thank you for
506. 20:42for being here today and spending some
507. 20:43time with me i've really enjoyed it
508. 20:46you're welcome i appreciate i appreciate
509. 20:48you believing but like i always say it
510. 20:51makes the difference y'all believe in us
511. 20:53you know even though our family believes
512. 20:55in us but you got to understand you know
513. 20:58that's family family going to support
514. 21:00family but see when you get someone
515. 21:02outside the family that believe in you
516. 21:05that trusts you
517. 21:07and then just saying this because they
518. 21:09get the check or they're saying this
519. 21:12because they're on some form of
520. 21:14guilt trip or anything of their own it's
521. 21:17because they know there's a lot of
522. 21:19injustice in the world and they and you
523. 21:22were fortunate enough to be one
524. 21:25that they found and you found them and
525. 21:28for that that's why i say the jeremy
526. 21:30stick with the family yeah it's one
527. 21:33thing to have relatives but it's a whole
528. 21:36nother thing to consider people that
529. 21:39it's not of your bloodline relatives
530. 21:43and they proven yourself to be more of a
531. 21:45relative than your relatives sometimes
532. 21:47well that's certainly certainly the case
533. 21:50with them with with jeremy definitely
534. 21:52thank you thank you
535. 21:54all right well i will leave you to your
536. 21:57your the rest of your day and
537. 22:00i really appreciate this this chat
538. 22:04oh i'm going to work
539. 22:06you got to work oh okay yes
540. 22:09i want my way to work i you know i got
541. 22:12about an hour left before i have to uh
542. 22:14start getting dressed and stuff from
543. 22:16work but i'm on my way to work
544. 22:19oh well i i won't keep you anymore
545. 22:21you've been an absolute star and it's
546. 22:23been a pleasure to you and i will you
547. 22:26know i will keep following your story
548. 22:28and you know i really hope that your
549. 22:30your appeal goes well and you get the
550. 22:32compensation you deserve
551. 22:34thank you ma'am
552. 22:35and i hope that everything works out
553. 22:37with y'all with jeremy you know and if
554. 22:40you want to you know you i think you
555. 22:43have my address and everything and if
556. 22:45jeremy wanna write to me or whatever
557. 22:48have you you know i'm
558. 22:50more than happy to ask him and have him
559. 22:54oh that's lovely thank you i would love
560. 22:56that i will tell him that and i just
561. 22:58want it before we go just uh you know uh
562. 23:01i can't go without giving a massive
563. 23:03shout out to the innocence projects they
564. 23:05they do
565. 23:06just an amazing amazing job when you
566. 23:09know
567. 23:10other people may have given up or
568. 23:12they're there aren't they they're there
569. 23:14working tirelessly to help innocent
570. 23:16people get there get their freedom and
571. 23:18get their convictions overturned
572. 23:21yes yes there are man
573. 23:23like you say because allah had numerous
574. 23:26lawyers yeah i mean my mother on the
575. 23:29cashed in uh insurance policy and all
576. 23:32types of things in the pace of different
577. 23:35lawyers different investigators and you
578. 23:37know and none of it ever worked it you
579. 23:39know and he'll come along the innocent
580. 23:42project with the support of the citizen
581. 23:44and i mean
582. 23:46what more you know and like i said it's
583. 23:49a job that's being done from the heart
584. 23:51and then being done color in the pocket
585. 23:54it's being done because they believe in
586. 23:56this and there's people who they
587. 23:58actually help getting out that they
588. 24:00believe in they truly believe and then
589. 24:02just because of the evidence because the
590. 24:04evidence don't sometimes be there all
591. 24:06the time it don't be there in the
592. 24:08beginning
593. 24:10but in the end the evidence does turn up
594. 24:13and when they go to these young people
595. 24:15when they come to me it ain't that i had
596. 24:17the evidence in my pocket and i said i
597. 24:20gotta sit right here with me
598. 24:23they believed in what i have seen and
599. 24:27that makes your world different
600. 24:30you know when you didn't do it you know
601. 24:32then we're gonna we're gonna look into
602. 24:34this show
603. 24:36and that's the beginning of believing
604. 24:39yeah fantastic
605. 24:41malcolm i'll let you get to work thank
606. 24:43you so much and all the very very best
607. 24:46for the future
608. 24:48yeah to you too
609. 24:50don't forget to tell jeremy holla at me
610. 24:52if you can
611. 24:53i will do i shall tell him
612. 24:55thank you so much
613. 24:57and thank you bye malcolm
614. 25:01thanks for listening to this podcast if
615. 25:04you'd like to do something to help
616. 25:05jeremy bamba then sign our online
617. 25:08petition to the home secretary for the
618. 25:10disclosure of case documents still
619. 25:12withheld by essex police
620. 25:14visit www.change.org
621. 25:17[Music]
622. 25:18and search for jeremy bamba
623. 25:20and don't forget to share the link with
624. 25:22your friends and family
625. 25:26[Music]
626. 25:34[Music]
627. 25:59you