David Rudovsky and Jules Epstein, along with lawyers from the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, have spent the week in a hearing in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas to demonstrate that their clients, Eugene Gilyard and Robert Felder, did not commit the 1995 murder for which they were both convicted. The conviction was based primarily on the testimony of a single witness who had identified photographs of Gilyard and Felder more than three years after the murder.
As reported by WHYY, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and in a comprehensive article in the City Paper, the effort to challenge the conviction is based on statement of Ricky “Rolex” Welborn confessing to the murder and confirming that Gilyard and Felder were not involved.
The defense on behalf of Gilyard and Felder finished the presentation of its evidence on Wednesday. The District Attorney’s Office, which opposes the petition seeking a new trial, is scheduled to present its evidence, if any, next week.