jason girts

Cause of Conviction: Sexual Abuse

County: Bullitt

Trial/Plea: Plea

Race: White

Year 2004

Sentence: 5

Time Served: 3

Date Sentence Vacated: ​April 29, 2008

Reason Sentence Vacated: Perjury​

Cause of Wrongful Conviction: ​Perjury

​​In 2004, Girts’ stepson accused Girts of having abused him many years earlier. There was no physical evidence or other corroboration of the offense. Nevertheless, Girts was convicted of sexual abuse in 2006, and sentenced to seven years for the offense. He served four years before his exoneration.

After trial, the stepson recanted the statement and stated that he made up the accusations because he didn’t like Girts and wanted him out of his and his mother’s lives. The stepson was given a polygraph concerning the statement, and he passed. Nevertheless, the case went to an evidentiary hearing, where the young man repeated his recantation. Immediately following the hearing, the Commonwealth’s Attorney requested the court to dismiss the indictment against Girts, being that the stepson’s testimony had been the only evidence against him.

Girts was released from prison the next day, in April 2008.

For more information on the case:

https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=4087