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The Case of Calvin Buari
📻 Episode #58
🎙️ Hosted by Jason Flom
📅 Jun 11, 2018
About This Episode
Calvin Buari served 22 years for a double murder in the Bronx, even though someone else confessed to the crime. In the early 1990s, Calvin Buari was a well-known crack cocaine distributor in the Bronx, and authorities blamed him for a spasm of bloodshed there; the press reported that he practiced "black magic" and was…
The Case
Calvin Buari served 22 years for a double murder in the Bronx, even though someone else confessed to the crime. In the early 1990s, Calvin Buari was a well-known crack cocaine distributor in the Bronx, and authorities blamed him for a spasm of bloodshed there; the press reported that he practiced "black magic" and was a murderous thug. In 1992, a disgruntled drug associate who had recently shot Calvin implicated him in the murder of Elijah and Salhaddin Harris, who were parked when a gunman walked up and fired about a dozen rounds into their car. Calvin was charged with the double murder and six rival drug dealers testified against him at his 1995 murder trial. No physical evidence connected him to the crime. A jury took only two hours to convict Calvin of murder, and he was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison. He never stopped fighting for his freedom, and the case took a turn with a 2003 affidavit from the key witness against him, Dwight Robinson, who confessed to the crime, stating that he “pinned this double murder on Calvin Buari because of a dispute between Calvin and me, and because I wanted complete control of my drug spot.” Journalist Steve Fishman followed Calvin’s story for seven years and eyewitnesses, first interviewed by Fishman, testified in court in 2015 that Calvin was not the murderer. By May 2017, a judge overturned the conviction and ordered 46-year-old Calvin Buari freed. In this episode, Calvin is joined by Steve Fishman, who chronicles his journey for justice in the hit podcast Empire on Blood.
https://www.wrongfulconvictionpodcast.com/with-jason-flom
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In Their Own Words — transcript excerpts
Short excerpts from the episode's official published transcript, with timestamps — listen from these moments, or read the full transcript via the podcast's own platforms.
00:07:40“Speaker 1: so now jurors were actually getting that article delivered in Speaker 1: little flyers to their houses while I was on trial. Speaker 4: Wow, you never heard telling before? Speaker 6: Yeah, I think there was even like a newsletter, a Speaker 6: co op newsletter. Speaker 6: And you know, Alan Karen's the prosecute. He works for”
00:30:17“Speaker 1: was in correspondence with Barry Shek, with Vanessa Pokin, Nina Morrison, Speaker 1: and a couple of others in an Innocent Project office. Speaker 1: But at the time, even though they were corresponding with me, Speaker 1: they were not taking cases that did not have DNA”
00:51:40“Speaker 4: I mean, And how did that feel? After decades of Speaker 4: fighting and trying to get people to listen, to have Speaker 4: a man in that position vacate your conviction. Speaker 1: It didn't really hit me at first. I think when Speaker 1: I went back to the bullpen, then it really really”
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Also on the podcast: #64 Calvin Johnson · #469 Calvin Buari