The wrongful conviction of Anthony Sims for the 1998 murder of Li Run Chen is the subject of a recent investigation by CNN reporter Jeff Winter. Anthony has served 23 years in prison despite undisputed evidence that points to a different perpetrator altogether, and despite decades of wrongdoing by law enforcement officials in withholding substantial Brady material and evidence of Anthony’s innocence.

CNN’s detailed report presents the timeline of the crime, the initial investigation, trial, and current legal hearings on Anthony’s motion to vacate his conviction and dismiss all charges against him. It also recounts testimony from a new witness whose testimony directly implicates another individual and exonerates Anthony.

As previously established, Mr. Chen was killed by a single shotgun blast while working at a Chinese restaurant in Brooklyn. Anthony has maintained throughout his arrest and incarceration that the murder was committed by his former friend Julius Graves – who was, conveniently, the single eyewitness to testify at trial that Anthony fired the fatal shot. In the current hearing on Anthony’s motion, however, Graves’ neighbor Rachel testified that the murder was committed by Graves because he was mad that Mr. Chen had touched Graves’ wife’s hand earlier that day. Rachel also testified that she saw Graves running out of the restaurant after she heard a shot, and that she called the police to tell them that Graves was the killer.

“On the basis of (Rachel’s) testimony alone, it’s plain that Anthony Sims did not receive a fair trial and his conviction should be vacated,” said Ilann M. Maazel, one of Anthony’s attorneys. “The jury never heard any of this evidence.”

ECBAWM attorneys Ilann M. Maazel, Sam Shapiro, and Nairuby L. Beckles, along with attorneys Thomas Hoffman and Jonathan Hiles, represent Anthony Sims. More information about the case is available on the Free Anthony Sims website.