"It Opened Our Eyes"

How the paths of two very different families crossed to cheer the release of a wrongly convicted man.

Radley Balko | November 16, 2009

(Page 2 of 2)

But Nick's father emphasizes that the similarities end there. "What we went through pales in comparison," Steve says, referring to Provience's nine years in prison. "I'm just saying it opened our eyes. I was always of the mindset that it was okay for the police to do a little wrong in relation to very bad people. And I think that's a pretty common thought. I now fully understand how even little wrongs are simply wrong, even when they're done to bad people. Once you start there, where do you stop?"

Steve says though his friends in Harper Woods believe his family was railroaded, many of them still retain his own old mindset when it comes to how police and prosecutors deal with less savory people—people like Dwayne Provinciel, who after all had a couple of drug convictions on his record at the time he was charged with murder. "I try to tell them, it's the other way around. If it can happen to us, can you imagine how easy it is for them to do it to people who have already made mistakes, or who don't have the resources to defend themselves?"

His son certainly can.

Radley Balko is a senior editor at Reason magazine.

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|11.16.09 @ 3:13PM|#

The article about the city's attempt to recover from the Cheolas family is insane. It states as fact that Mrs. Cheolas refused to let the emergency personnel into the house. Doesn't question any of the police statements. Disgusting article.

Otherwise a heartwarmer for once from Mr. Balko, but there's still gotta be something in there that ruins my day.

|11.16.09 @ 3:31PM|#

The hack is parroting public officials and calling it reporting.

|11.16.09 @ 3:33PM|#

Re: Andrew,

Disgusting article [from the Detroit Free Press].

Agreed - it was just terrible. Repeating the lie that Ms. Cheolas refused to let the emergency personnel into her house reeks of calumny - it just shows the shoddy work many so-called "journalists" have been known for recently.

Scott|11.16.09 @ 3:51PM|#

Kinda odd that the comments section for that article is locked, and the "Letter to the Editor" link doesn't work right either. I guess reporter Christina Hall doesn't want to hear about the facts in this case either.

So the city's cops, paramedics, and prosecutors tried to frame this family. Thank God they failed, even though they apparently suffered no consequences for their lying. And now they're suing the family to make them pay for the smear job? That is simply outrageous. The city should be falling all over themselves apologizing for their corrupt police force and prosecutor's office. But I'm sure this is an isolated incident, and an internal investigation found no wrongdoing on the part of the Harper Woods PD. Amirite?

|11.16.09 @ 3:53PM|#

The guy looks guilty to me.

Jonas|11.16.09 @ 5:35PM|#

Wow, it's sad that THIS gets described as a "heartwarmer". But, relative to Balko's other posts, it really is. Still a bunch of shitty crap we should never have to hear about in the first place because it should never happen in the first place.

IceTrey|11.16.09 @ 3:20PM|#

I agree that article is appalling. Just another case of MSM propaganda.

|11.16.09 @ 3:27PM|#

The Cheolases eventually discovered that the police officers who came to their home that night had written two sets of reports, and there were major discrepancies between the two drafts.

I find it disturbing that, if this is true, the police officers were not charged with perjury, since they have to sign their reports. Police reports are considered evidence in a trial.

CaptainSmartass|11.16.09 @ 11:09PM|#

I note that you didn't say you find it "surprising" about the two reports. It shouldn't be, this kind of thing happens all the time.

Warty|11.16.09 @ 3:35PM|#

I had a lovely fantasy of being the judge in either of these cases, and holding the police and district attorneys in contempt of court for being lying shitbags. There have to be some examples of that happening, right?

LarryA|11.16.09 @ 3:48PM|#

If only.

Balco could write a book of "If you haven't done anything wrong you don't have anything to worry about" stories, only no one would be strong enough to pick it up.

|11.16.09 @ 7:09PM|#

The judge seemed pretty pissed off, unfortunately, as a judge you'd be as impotent as this judge apparently was.

Unless the prosecutor who was suborning the perjury wants to bring the perjury chargers(HA!) then the judge can't do shit but throw the case out, which he did.

Cliché Bandit|11.16.09 @ 3:44PM|#

Mr. Balko, a suggestion. For X-mas I would like nothing but a week on solid, good, upbeat, comuppance type reports from your desk. Ones where victims get their justice, corrupt politicians, police, prosecutors get their penance. I want just one week without wnating to poke my eyes out with ethernet cables. Just one week where every article lowers my blood pressure and makes me think of bunnys and rainbows. Just one week, that is all I ask. I understand that there is very little time to make this happen and there may not even be enough good stories out there in which case...lie to me. It's x-mas for craps sake...Just lie. I think many of us would feel better for that week.

As usually, yours is some of the best reporting ever and I commend your efforts. Keep up the work but do try to make it "good".

For want of a spoon

Kroneborge|11.16.09 @ 5:55PM|#

*this, lol

|11.17.09 @ 8:53AM|#

Haha. First of all, no it's not x-mas yet. It's not even thanksgiving yet. Please stop perpetuating that cultural lie.

Also, yeah we'd all like to read nice criminal justice stories from Radley. Unfortunately a solid week of them would probably require Radley to become a fiction writer.

Pingback| 11.16.09 @ 4:02PM

“It Opened Our Eyes” | The Agitator links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:

…August 2002 July 2002 June 2002 May 2002 April 2002 Site Credits « In His Defense, He At Least Doesn’t Hold an Elected Office “It Opened Our Eyes” Monday, November 16th, 2009 My crime column this week is almost uplifting. At least not as much of a downer as usual. Here’s the tease from Hit & Run: Earlier this month, Wayne County, Michigan Circuit Judge Timothy Kenny threw out the murder…

Stretchy|11.16.09 @ 4:56PM|#

Eye twitching... fist clenching.... I wonder if the hospitalized girl's parents are somehow connected to the town muckety-mucks. Something like, "Our precious, innocent daughter got drunk and embarrassed us so, someone has to pay."

Jonas|11.16.09 @ 5:40PM|#

Did anyone read the comments on the article Balko linked to about Provience? Here's the first comment:

"Her son headed home to enjoy a meal he has spent years looking forward to eating.
"My momma's spaghetti. She cooks the best spaghetti," Provience said."

After discovering an empty Ragu jar hidden in the trash, Dwayne bashed his momma in the head with it just before shanking his grandmother with the sharpened handle of a sauce ladle that he hid in his rectum just prior to dessert.

Someone hears that a man wrongfully convicted of a crime gets set loose from jail and then assumes that really he's probably just a murderous psycho who deserved to be locked up in the first place.

Damn you gotta love America's faith in the criminal justice system, don't ya?

Michael Ejercito|11.16.09 @ 9:51PM|#

And why are we supposed to trust the government to run health care?

ReAnimator|11.17.09 @ 7:58PM|#

Because if you don't you're a right wing nut job who spits on the poor and hates brown children?

Steve Verdon|11.16.09 @ 5:47PM|#

Guys...this is taking place in Detroit. Detroit. A city that is so...utterly fucked up it is hard to imagine. Reminds me of a line from Aliens,

"Nuke the site from orbit, its the only way to be sure."

|11.16.09 @ 7:01PM|#

No, it's taking place in Harper Woods. The column you're posting a comment on even directly states it's in the suburbs.

|11.16.09 @ 7:12PM|#

Pretty sure that line transcended it's movie quote status and became an official internet meme in the past 5 or so years.

|11.16.09 @ 7:13PM|#

Sorry, shoulda said "half the dialogue in that movie" not "that line"

Pingback| 11.16.09 @ 5:52PM

Wine Reviews Online » Blog Archive » “It Opened Our Eyes” - Reason.com links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:

…of Dwayne Provience, who had been convicted for a 2000 drug-related murder in downtown Detroit. After nine-and-a-half years in prison, Provience … Read more of this article click here –> wine - Bing News This entry was posted on Monday, November 16th, 2009 at 3:30 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or

Pingback| 11.16.09 @ 5:54PM

Twitter Trackbacks for "It Opened Our Eyes" - Reason Magazine [reason.com] on Topsy. links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:

…blog. Topsy Plugin – WordPress Shortened Links Linking to the reason.com page http://bit.ly/1KjJb4 info http://bit.ly/4pMwJa info http://bit.ly/HoobC info 3 tweets retweet "It Opened Our Eyes" - Reason Magazine reason.com/archives/2009/11/16/it-opened-our-eyes – view page – cached How the paths of two very different families crossed to cheer the release of a wrongly convicted man. 3…

Robert|11.16.09 @ 8:10PM|#

At first I read it as "Provience, who had been convicted for 2,000 drug-related murders"!

robc|11.16.09 @ 10:37PM|#

Ditto.

JGR|11.17.09 @ 10:25PM|#

You thought he had gone to prison for being with the DEA . . ?

Mark Lambert|11.16.09 @ 9:56PM|#

Great article, Radley. Keep up the good work.

|11.16.09 @ 11:32PM|#

No doubt about it. The US Kangaroo Court system is a big JOKE!

RT
www.online-privacy.at.tc

Pingback| 11.17.09 @ 12:02AM

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Motive?|11.17.09 @ 12:05AM|#

What is the motive to frame the Cheolas family here? The Cheolas version of events sounds sketchy.

IceTrey|11.17.09 @ 2:41AM|#

"The Cheolas version of events sounds sketchy."

Which is exactly why after 28 prosecution witnesses the judge threw the case out without any defense. Don't forget the whole thing was audio recorded and supports their story.

|11.17.09 @ 9:57AM|#

Cheolas family held a party for kids to drink. No dispute about underage kid having .18 BA and hospital trip, right? State screwed up here trying to get these people just punishment for their illegal behavior. Cheolas' won, justice system works. Except they still suck as parents - let's not hoist them up as victims. They weren't convicted of anything, doesn't mean they didn't do something wrong and they still suck as parents. Moral of story for Cheolas-types: don't allow alcohol parties for under-agers and society will avoid the expense of trying (incompetently in this case) to maintain order and safety of citizens.

|11.17.09 @ 12:19PM|#

"Cheolas family held a party for kids to drink." No: RTFA.

"State screwed up here" == "State agents' perjury failed".

"Cheolas' won, justice system works" == "Cheolas' out $1M, perjurers free to try try again".

|1.5.10 @ 5:16PM|#

and I hope they do !

Pingback| 11.17.09 @ 1:16AM

Rough 'ol Boy » Blog Archive » American Justice links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:

…should just read Balko’s articles and blog religiously, but since that’s not going to happen, I will continue to report the craziest offenses against human decency here. In Balko’s latest column, he tells the stories of two families who have been wronged by the criminal justice system. One is the family of Dwayne Provience, who was falsely accused and convicted of murder and sat in prison from…

Pingback| 11.17.09 @ 8:42AM

Instapundit » Blog Archive » RADLEY BALKO: How the paths of two very different famili links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:

…t… JENNIFER RUBIN: If Barack Obama is so smart, why isn’t he a better President? Generally, our smart… » November 17, 2009 RADLEY BALKO: How the paths of two very different families crossed to cheer the release of a wrongly convicted man. Posted at by Glenn Reynolds at 8:15 am if (WIDGETBOX) WIDGETBOX.renderWidget('c6738f00-977c-48fd-98da-0afe24da2ee8'); Get the Pajamas TV - V2.0 widget and many…

|11.17.09 @ 11:01AM|#

As was made clear to those of us with a reading comprehension above that of a sixth grader, the parents did not know that teens at the party had snuck in alcohol until one of them got drunk. Since their child was not the one getting drunk, it sounds like they aren't the parents that suck.

I'd really like to know how, in your twisted little world, having kids sneak in alcohol is the same thing as "allowing alcohol parties for under-agers."

Beezard|11.20.09 @ 1:21AM|#

Even if the parents DID supply the alcohol, I'd still be all for them so long as "teen aged" meant 18 and older.

(I realize the law and the other kids parents might not agree with me...I'm just trying to flesh out another moral delineation to the supposed monstrosity that the cops felt they had to lie for.)

JC|11.17.09 @ 12:21PM|#

This is probably a trivial detail, but what was the name of the judge who presided over Mrs. Cheolas' case? I ask because it's spelled at least three different ways within the same paragraph, and I mentally trip over it each time. Given the otherwise excellent article, it's a bit distracting.

And thanks for sharing this; it's dumbfounding that the police just blatantly lied after the initial reports.

|11.17.09 @ 1:06PM|#

"No one involved in all of this has ever been sanctioned or punished in any way," Nick says. Steve adds, "They could do it again if they wanted. And they'd get away with it again."

Yup

JGR|11.17.09 @ 10:27PM|#

...and they WILL...

|1.5.10 @ 5:23PM|#

The cheolas family is not innocent... I worked for Candace and she is a hard core control freak that gets very much involved in her kids and their status. There is no way this self professed "cool mom" did not know what was going on in her own home. I find it absurd that the HWPD and parametics and all of the parents and teens involved conspired against them.
Sorry Cheolas Family you are just not that special or important... You screwed up and very lucky you got off.

Pingback| 11.19.09 @ 10:56PM

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“it Opened our Eyes” - Reason Magazine « slotsdebtconsolidation links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:

…for the school’s Innocence Clinic. The younger Cheolas handled the clinic’s investigation of the police and prosecutors who worked on Provience’s case, a critical component to … Read More Additional Sites find a hobby Tags: critical component, free markets, free minds, harper woods, suburban town This entry was posted on Saturday, November 21st, 2009 at 4:04 am and is filed under…

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…September 2002 August 2002 July 2002 June 2002 May 2002 April 2002 Site Credits « Morning Links Innocence Roundup Wednesday, December 16th, 2009 A roundup of innocence stories from the last few weeks: Last month, I wrote a column about Michigan law student Nick Cheolas and convicted Michigan murderer Dwayne Provience. Cheolas was inspired by his own family’s run-in with the criminal justice system to work on…

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