Super Bowl champion Dana Stubblefield’s conviction was overturned due to racially discriminatory statements made by the prosecution during his trial.
Super Bowl champion and former San Francisco 49ers star Dana Stubblefield was released from prison Tuesday after his 2020 rape conviction was vacated by a California appeals court.
Stubblefield, who is Black, had his conviction overturned after the Sixth Court of Appeals determined prosecutors had made racially discriminatory statements during his trial.
The Sixth Court of Appeals found that the prosecutor violated California’s Racial Justice Act of 2020, which was passed during the summer of racial injustice after the police killing George Floyd.
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Prosecutors said during the trial that police had never searched Stubblefield’s house and had never introduced a gun into evidence, saying it was because he was a famous Black man, and it would “open up a storm of controversy,” according to the appeals court’s decision.
The court said that by determining that Stubblefield’s race had been a factor in law enforcement’s decision to forgo searching his house, prosecutors had implied that the house would have been searched and that a gun would not have been found had Stubblefield not been Black.
Stubblefield has remained in prison since December because a lower court judge said he didn’t have the jurisdiction to grant bail or release.
Stubblefield’s release was granted after the state attorney general’s office and appeals office weighed in.
Santa Clara Superior Court Judge Hector Ramon granted Stubblefield’s release Friday.
CALIFORNIA APPEALS COURT OVERTURNS SUPER BOWL CHAMP’S RAPE CONVICTION DUE TO RACIAL DISCRIMINATION
Stubblefield had served nearly four years of his 15-year sentence.
“Finally, an innocent man is no longer sitting in a cage away from his family,” Stubblefield’s defense attorney, Kenneth Rosenfeld, said in a statement.
Stubblefield was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison in October 2020, when he was convicted of raping a developmentally disabled woman in 2015 who prosecutors said he lured to his home with a promise of a babysitting job.
Defense attorneys argued no rape occurred and that Stubblefield said the woman consented to sex in exchange for money.
Stubblefield played in the NFL for 11 years and was named defensive rookie of the year with the 49ers in 1993.
The three-time Pro Bowler was named defensive player of the year in 1997 after recording 15 sacks.
After five seasons with the 49ers, Stubblefield played for the Washington Redskins for three seasons before rejoining the 49ers for two more seasons.
After his second stint with the 49ers, Stubblefield played one season for the Oakland Raiders before retiring after the 2003 season.
Fox News’ Ryan Gaydos and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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