Jabbar Collins

Jabbar Collins

Jabbar Collins (born July 8, 1972) is an American man who served 16 years for a crime he did not commit. He was convicted of second-degree murder following the February 1994 death of Orthodox rabbi Abraham Pollack in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The 20-year-old Collins, who lived in a nearby housing project, was arrested and charged with the murder. In March 1995, he was sentenced by a jury to 34-years-to-life in prison, sixteen of which he served.In 2010, Collins was exonerated after a key witness recanted. The case was settled in 2014 for $13 million. It exposed questionable policies under the former Brooklyn district attorney, Charles J. Hynes, and Hynes' right-hand man Michael F. Vecchione.The case has been used by Judge Frederic Block in support of a bill for the nation’s first commission on prosecutorial conduct. The bill is pending approval by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.

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