Information AboutRay Krone |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT RAY KRONE | |
| year of birth missing | |
| krone, ray | |
| united states wrongfully convicted people | |
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PRE-ARREST LIFE Krone grew up in the small town of Dover in York County Pennsylvania and graduated from Dover Area High School in 1974 . He was a former boyscout and high school athlete, and after graduating from high school, he enlisted in the United States Airforce rising to the rank of sergeant. After the Air Force, he relocated to Phoenix Arizona and gained employment with the US Postal Service. Krone was a regular customer at the CBS Lounge restaurant in Phoenix, and engaged in several amateur sporting leagues. On, December 29 , 1991 , bar manager Kim Ancona was found murdered and raped in the restroom of Lounge, and a police investigation began an inquiry. The investigation narrowed on Ray Krone as an early suspect. Several bite marks on Ms. Ancona's body were irregular in shape, which led police to suspect Krone. Krone had suffered from a serious automobile accident in his youth which required extensive jaw and dental surgery. The police relied on their assumption despite a great deal on conflicting evidence including:
INDICTMENT AND CONVICTION Despite these discrepancies, the Phoenix Police Department continued with the investigation and issued an indictment against Krone. The Department would also later hide evidence including Ms. Ancona's undergarments carrying foreign blood, as well as saliva samples taken from the bite marks. Krone was dubbed the "Snaggletooth Killer" because one of his top front teeth stuck out. Dr. Raymond Rawson, a nationally known forensic odontologist, testified that he was 100% certain the bite mark on the victim matched Krone. A retrial jury convicted Krone again in 1996 despite defense testimony from three forensic dentists. This time the judge sentenced him to life in prison, citing doubts about whether Krone was the killer. In 2001, DNA testing of blood found on the victim was matched to the actual killer, Kenneth Phillips , and Krone was released after serving 10 1/3 years. EXONERATION It was later learned that prior to the second trial the prosecuting attorney was personally told by two of the country’s most respected dental forensic experts that there was "no way" the teeth marks on Ancona’s body were made by Krone. The experts asserted the prosecution’s dental expert was absolutely wrong to identify Krone as the source of the bite marks. Not only did the prosecutor not inform the defense of this exculpatory information, but he proceeded with seeking the death penalty. In 2004, Krone came to the attention of the TV show Extreme Makeover , and agreed to a makeover that included the replacement of five of his front teeth. The program documenting his transformation was broadcast in February 2005. In April 2005, Krone was awarded $1.4 million by Maricopa County and in September he was awarded $3 million by the city of Phoenix. In February 2006, the Arizona Legislature publicly apologized to him. REFERENCES
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