Fighting for Justice: The James Dailey Case

October 23, 2020

No innocent person should ever spend a day in prison, but we know that innocent people are sometimes wrongfully convicted and incarcerated in the United States. Since 1989, there have been 2,679 exonerations due to wrongful convictions. In the past two years alone, 321 people were exonerated in the United States—the highest percentage of whom were falsely convicted of homicide. Collectively, these innocent criminal defendants have lost more than 24,150 years of their lives. It is critical to learn about the factors that lead to wrongful conviction and recognize the devastating consequences wrongful conviction has for innocent people, their families, and their communities.

Among the recently exonerated is Clemens Aguirre-Jarquin, represented by DRC’s founder, Josh Dubin. Mr. Aguirre-Jarquin spent more than 14 years behind bars—including a decade on Florida’s death row—after being wrongfully convicted of murdering his two neighbors in 2004. While thousands like Mr. Aguirre-Jarquin have been able to reclaim their freedom and innocence, the road is still long for countless men and women fighting for justice behind bars. Such is the case for another DRC client, James Dailey, a current Florida death row inmate who has maintained his innocence for more than three decades.

EXONERATIONS BY CRIME 2018–2019

• 321 Exonerations

• Homicide: 45%

• Non-violent crimes: 34%

• Other violent crimes: 34%

• Sexual assault: 12%

Who Is James Dailey?

James Dailey, now 73 years old, was sentenced to die in August 1987 after being convicted of killing Shelly Boggio. Both Mr. Dailey and Jack Pearcy, his roommate at the time, were found guilty. Pearcy received life in prison while Mr. Dailey was sentenced to death. Shelly Boggio, 14 years old, was stabbed and drowned in the waters of Indian Rocks Beach in Florida more than 30 years ago. Jack Pearcy, a 29-year-old construction worker with a history of violence against women, was an immediate suspect. Pearcy acknowledged that he took Ms. Boggio to a beachfront bar around midnight, where she was last seen, and that he drove her to the lovers’ lane along the Intracoastal Waterway where she was killed. In an attempt to shift the blame from himself, Pearcy then claimed that he picked up his housemate, Mr. Dailey, before he and Ms. Boggio headed down to the water. Pearcy admitted to police that he stabbed Ms. Boggio at least once but insisted that Mr. Dailey was the actual killer.

There was never any eyewitness or forensic evidence implicating Mr. Dailey, nor has there ever been a logical motive. Instead, Mr. Dailey was convicted mostly based on the testimony of three jailhouse informants with histories of lying. Over the past 30 years, Pearcy has admitted at least four times that he committed the murder alone, including in a sworn affidavit. In December 2019, Josh Dubin obtained a signed statement from Pearcy that read: “James Dailey had nothing to do with the murder of Shelly Boggio. I committed the crime alone.” Thus far, James Dailey remains in jail.

What Happened at Trial?

Mr. Dailey’s conviction largely rested on the word of Paul Skalnik, a prolific conman-turned-jailhouse-informant. Skalnik, who has been a jailhouse informant for eighteen murder cases—eight of which resulted in death sentences—testified that Mr. Dailey confessed to him while he was incarcerated. Mr. Skalnik has been found to have fabricated his entire account and lied on numerous occasions, including in sworn statements. Five days after a jury sentenced Mr. Dailey to death, Skalnik—who was facing 20 years in prison on charges of grand theft—was released from jail due to his cooperation with the State Attorney’s Office. Mr. Dailey’s case highlights the controversial use of jailhouse informants in criminal cases and how the expectation of leniency (whether it be in sentences, cash, or improved conditions) creates an incentive to lie.

The Dangers of Jailhouse Informant Testimony

Unreliable jailhouse informant testimony is a demonstrated cause of wrongful convictions. Jailhouse informants have played a role in 79% of cases of all proven wrongful convictions in the United States. Overall, the National Registry of Exonerations found that the more severe the crime, the more likely there was testimony from a jailhouse informant.

DEATH ROW EXONERATIONS BY CONTRIBUTING FACTOR

• Jailhouse Informant Testimony: 45.9%

• Official Misconduct: 25.2%

• False or Misleading Forensic Evidence: 14.4%

• Mistaken Witness Identification: 9.9%

• False Confessions: 5.5%

• 111 Total Exonerations

In 2004, the Center on Wrongful Convictions released the report “The Snitch System,” which documented the toll of false informant testimony. The report concluded that informant testimony was one of the leading causes of wrongful convictions in capital cases. From 1970–1979, when capital punishment was reinstated, to 2004, 45.9% of death penalty exonerations were tied to false jailhouse informant testimony. Today, nearly a quarter of death-row exonerations—23%—have involved a jailhouse informant. While it is impossible to fully grasp the magnitude of the suffering and the lasting impact of wrongful conviction on exonerees, it is crucial to reflect on these injustices and understand the causes of wrongful convictions—including the use of jailhouse informants, who trade testimony for reduced jail time or other benefits. It is also vital to continue to fight for the innocent, like Mr. Dailey, who are still pursuing justice.