Wrongly Accused, Released from Prison, Killed at Party

Arthur Paul Carmona, 26, an advocate for people wrongly accused of crimes who was wrongly accused himself and incarcerated for 2 1/2 years as a teenager in Orange County was killed this weekend. His name became widely known when he was arrested when he was 16 and convicted of robbing two juice bars in Irvine and Costa Mesa:

His mother mustered support for her son and political and community outrage followed over police tactics that led to her son's arrest. Support for overturning his 12-year prison sentence came from law firms, community groups, Hollywood actors and the politically active rock band Rage Against the Machine.

In August 2000, a judge ordered a new trial. The District Attorney decided not to seek a new trial and Carmona was released. [MSNBC]

In an unfortunate incident, the Orange County resident was killed early Sunday morning when he was hit by a vehicle after an argument at a party. MSNBC reports that "devastated family members said the timing of Carmona's death is especially tragic because he'd just recently begun to heal from his time behind bars and was beginning to pursue new passions."

Carmona was learning to become a firefighter and was working with the American Civil Liberties Union's Innocence Project. Santa Ana police were still searching for the driver of the truck that killed Carmona.

Photo by guamafro via Flickr