In December 2003, Willard E. Brown confessed to the 1984 rape and stabbing death of Deborah Sykes after DNA testing linked him to the crime. His confession led to the release of Darryl Hunt, who had served about 18 years of a life sentence for a crime he always denied committing.
On February 6, 2004, Superior Court Judge Anderson Cromer vacated Hunt's murder conviction in the case. Cromer dismissed the case against Hunt "with prejudice," meaning he can never be tried in the murder again.
Over the course of its inquiry from 2005-2007, a citizens committee revealed mistakes made by law-enforcement officers in the handling of the Sykes case and three other rape cases that occurred in the same time frame. In February 2007, their report was released and the city issued a formal apology to Darryl Hunt.
» Sykes Committee Report (PDF)
» City of Winston-Salem's Apology (PDF)
This page contains links to stories printed since the eight-part series about Hunt ran in the Journal from Nov. 16 to Nov. 23, 2003. The most recent articles are listed first.
Not all questions in Darryl Hunt case could be answered
For the Sykes commission, race's impact undetermined
It took 19 years to identify who really killed Deborah Sykes. Figuring out how much of a factor race played in the wrongful imprisonment of Darryl Hunt could take even longer. Last month, the city of Winston-Salem released a 103-page report with about 9,000 pages of supporting documents. They lay out how the local justice system failed Hunt and he spent more than 18 years in prison for Sykes' murder.
Council agrees to pay $1.65 million to Hunt
Officers fell short of standards, Joines says
Had witnesses not identified the wrong man; had police connected more dots; had police not destroyed evidence - maybe Hunt could have been spared time in prison for the murder of Deborah Sykes. Those are some of the key findings in a 9,000-page report on how Hunt was wrongfully imprisoned for Sykes' murder.
Have police learned from errors in the Hunt case?
If you have followed all, or even parts, of the trials of Darryl Hunt (to steal a documentary-film title), you have probably gotten the sense that the epilogue to his nightmare is nearly finished. A 9,000-page report from the Deborah Sykes Administrative Review Committee is scheduled to be presented, and down the hall, city lawyers and Hunt's attorneys are negotiating a settlement. When - and if - those things happen, they will leave just one unanswered question: Have we learned anything?
Police to change lineups
Officials are hoping to reduce wrongful IDs
Chief Pat Norris of the Winston-Salem Police Department and other officers demonstrated yesterday how the police department would use a new, computer-based photo lineup that a state commission says can help avoid wrongful identifications by witnesses to crimes. Norris announced in May 2004 that the department would adopt guidelines from the Chief Justice's Commission on Actual Innocence.
Daulton to be remembered for more than the Hunt case
By all accounts, Jim Daulton was the kind of guy you would want as a friend, co-worker or a neighbor - hard-working, honest, dependable and loyal. He died Friday. He worked for the Winston-Salem Police Department for 36 years, and if not for one ill-fated assignment, Daulton most likely would have enjoyed a long, productive career in relative anonymity.
Digging Deeper: Review studies police work in Sykes case
Police overlooked pieces of puzzle; citizens committee finds a pattern of missteps, including premature destruction of evidence
The citizens committee that for more than a year has been quietly studying the police investigation of the 1984 rape and murder of Deborah Sykes has discovered a startling series of missteps. Prodded by one especially curious member, the committee has learned of a pattern of mistakes more extensive than previously believed, beginning with the destruction of evidence in a similar downtown rape two months before the attack on Sykes.
N.C. may get innocence panel to review convictions
Avenue would be open to inmates who deny guilt and can show merit to back their claim
Legislation making its way through the General Assembly would have given Hunt and other inmates another, limited option for their appeals.
It would create an eight-member panel - to be called the N.C. Innocence Inquiry Commission - that would review claims from inmates who say they are innocent.
One former prosecutor speaks to Sykes committee
Sparrow prosecuted Darryl Hunt twice in connection with an unrelated slaying
Only one prosecutor involved with the criminal prosecutions of Darryl Hunt has decided to speak to a committee that is reviewing how Winston-Salem police handled the investigation into the 1984 slaying of Deborah Sykes.
And he was the one who had the least to do with the Sykes case.
Brown declines interview with panel on Sykes case
Many in the case won't speak to committee's investigators
Willard Brown, the man who confessed 2 1/2 years ago to killing Deborah Sykes in downtown Winston-Salem in 1984, has refused an interview request from a committee reviewing how police investigated the case.
Brown is now serving a sentence of life plus 10 years at Central Prison in Raleigh. The wrong man, Darryl Hunt, was twice convicted in the case before DNA evidence pointed to Brown in late 2003.
Hunt movie draws 1,300
Community shows it is trying to heal, he says
More than 1,300 people packed the Stevens Center last night to watch a film about a murder and a wrongful conviction that have divided Winston-Salem for more than 20 years.
Sykes panel wants more
Case prosecutors are invited to talk
Members of a committee reviewing how Winston-Salem police investigated the 1984 murder of Deborah Sykes have decided to invite prosecutors in the case to talk with them.
Witness says he identified Brown from the start
Kevey Coleman, whose testimony helped convict Darryl Hunt in the murder in 1984 of Deborah Sykes, now says that the first person he identified when questioned by police two years after the crime is Willard Brown, the man who confessed to the crime after DNA evidence identified him in 2004.
Panel will try again to get ex-officers to talk
A woman's statement about a 1985 rape leads to new questions in probe of Sykes' killing
Detectives reviewing the investigation in the 1984 rape and murder of Deborah Sykes in downtown Winston-Salem will make another run at questioning several retired police officers to follow up on revelations made Thursday night by a woman raped six months after Sykes' death.
Victim: Police ignored key link
Woman's rape was similar to killing of Deborah Sykes
City officials said yesterday that they plan to proceed with a review of the
Winston-Salem Police Department's investigation into the 1984 rape and killing
of Deborah Sykes now that Willard E. Brown, the man charged last year with
Sykes' murder, has pleaded guilty to the crime.
City to proceed with review of police action in Hunt case
Documents were sealed pending trial of Brown
City officials said yesterday that they plan to proceed with a review of the
Winston-Salem Police Department's investigation into the 1984 rape and killing
of Deborah Sykes now that Willard E. Brown, the man charged last year with
Sykes' murder, has pleaded guilty to the crime.
Deal brings end to 20-year Hunt case
Brown pleads guilty to rape, killing of Deborah Sykes
A 20-year-old murder case that fomented racial mistrust and led to an innocent
man serving 18 years in prison came to a close yesterday, when a suspect identified
last year through DNA testing pleaded guilty, acknowledging publicly that he
killed newspaper copy editor Deborah Sykes.
Hunt case leads to legal reform
New procedures aim to prevent wrongful convictions as in Sykes case
The wrongful conviction of Darryl Hunt, released a year ago after serving
18 years for murder in the 1984 rape and stabbing of Deborah Sykes, has helped
lead to a series of reforms in the way that the police and courts handle criminal
cases.
Hunt pardon unlikely to hurt Easley, analysts say
Governor probably wouldn't get conservatives' vote, they say, and he'll
likely keep democratic base
Though Darryl Hunt's case has divided politics along racial lines in Winston-Salem
for 20 years, analysts see little political fallout for Democratic Gov. Mike
Easley for pardoning Hunt this week in the middle of an election year.
Brown to face death penalty
Prosecutors will request the death penalty for the man charged last December
in the 1984 killing of Deborah Sykes, a newspaper copy editor, in downtown
Winston-Salem.
Governor pardons Hunt
20-year ordeal ends for man wrongly convicted
Gov. Mike Easley pardoned Darryl Hunt yesterday in the 1984 rape and murder
of Deborah Sykes, proclaiming Hunt innocent of the crime for which he served
18 years in prison.
Officials support panel of residents
Committee votes for independent group to look at Sykes case
Wanted: Clear-headed individuals with no baggage who are able to evaluate
others. Winston-Salem City Council Member Vivian Burke said that those are
essential criteria for anyone chosen to serve on a citizen-advisory committee
as the city reviews the Winston-Salem Police Department's investigation into
the rape and killing of Deborah Sykes in 1984.
City could widen probe
Citizens may review police investigation of Sykes rape, death
The city of Winston-Salem plans to ask citizens to help review the police
department's investigation of the 1984 rape and murder of Deborah Sykes.
Easley has own pardon process
Steps not spelled out by law, counsel says
After he delivered papers to Gov. Mike Easley's office in February to support
a pardon for Darryl Hunt, even Forsyth District Attorney Tom Keith said he
wasn't sure what is required for the governor to grant a pardon.
Easley to decide soon on Hunt pardon
Experts not surprised that governor is taking his time
Gov. Mike Easley said yesterday that he would decide soon whether to pardon
Darryl Hunt, who was exonerated earlier this year in the 1984 rape and murder
of Deborah Sykes. A pardon will entitle Hunt to about $360,000 from the state
- $20,000 for each of the 18 years he spent in prison for a crime he did
not commit.
Case against Brown isn't simple one, Keith says
Prosecutors face many steps before any trial can begin
The case against Willard Brown appears to be a 500-trillion-to-1 slam dunk
for prosecutors. The only thing left to decide, seemingly, was what punishment
should be pursued against Brown, who was identified through DNA testing and
charged last December in the 1984 rape and murder of Deborah Sykes.
Charge is filed in Hunt ID theft
Local man is held while police look at other instances
A Winston-Salem man was charged yesterday with illegally getting a state
ID card in the name of Darryl Eugene Hunt, and investigators are looking
into whether he also got ID cards in other people's names. Hunt was released
from prison in December 2003.
Darryl Hunt a victim of ID theft
Debts were incurred in his name while he was imprisoned
Darryl Hunt, freed in December after 18 years in prison for a murder he did
not commit, learned this week that he is a victim of identity theft.
City group discusses Hunt case
Hunt, Rabil, Little listen in during committee meeting on new review
In 1985, when the city manager's office first reviewed the Winston-Salem
Police Department's handling of the investigation into the rape and murder
of Deborah Sykes, Darryl Hunt was in prison serving a life sentence for her
death.
Review to investigate police missteps in Hunt
case
'If things weren't done right, we need to deal with it,' assistant city
manager says
A new review by the city manager's office of the 1984 rape and murder of
Deborah Sykes will focus on mistakes made by the police, including how the
man now charged with the crime was not identified earlier even though he
had been interviewed and was suspected in a similar crime.
Men at forum talk about their readjustment to
society after prison
Dealing with adversity through transformation rather than bitterness helped
three men to emerge with their freedom from three of the most controversial
criminal-justice cases in the Triad in the past 20 years.
Hunt thankful for the support
It 'meant so much to me,' he says
Darryl Hunt met with about 75 supporters at Emmanuel Baptist Church yesterday
and answered questions ranging from what he likes to eat to how he plans
to spend the rest of his life.
Keith gives Easley papers to support Hunt pardon
Governor says he is waiting for a request from Hunt's attorneys
District Attorney Tom Keith of Forsyth County met with Gov. Mike Easley's
attorney yesterday to start preparing Easley to consider a pardon for Darryl
Hunt.
Keith to plead for a Hunt pardon
DA says he now looks at the complicated case from a different perspective
District Attorney Tom Keith of Forsyth County says he believes that one man
raped Deborah Sykes and that the same man killed her. And that man is not
Darryl Hunt.
Cleared by DNA
DNA testing has led to freedom for 140 men across the country mistakenly
convicted of crimes
Grand jury indicts Brown
Charges against him include kidnapping, first-degree murder
On the first day of court after the release of Darryl Hunt, a Forsyth County
grand jury formally charged Willard E. Brown in connection with a string
of crimes involving the 1984 death of Deborah Sykes.
Aftermath: Some views unchanged
The murder of Deborah Sykes in 1984 and imprisonment of Darryl Hunt for the
crime created division between the city's blacks and whites for years.
Attacks were similar
Rabil: Police missed links, or hid them
Mark Rabil, Hunt's longtime attorney, talked about the police work on the
1985 case a day after Hunt's conviction was overturned by a Superior Court
judge.
Hunt Cleared
Law-enforcement officials say another man, alone, is guilty
In the end, Darryl Hunt's long imprisonment in connection with the 1984 rape
and murder of Deborah Sykes was a case of mistaken identity.
'I'm Sorry'
Courts find it hard to apologize
When DNA tests showed that he was not the man who had raped Deborah Sykes
in 1984, Darryl Hunt said he thought he'd be released after serving almost
10 years in prison.
Lifting a Shadow
Participants reflect on how Hunt's case affected them, city
There have been three major criminal investigations, two trials and numerous
court appeals since Darryl Hunt was first charged with murder.
Hunt's bid for exoneration goes to court today
Darryl Hunt is expected to be exonerated today in the 1984 rape and murder
of Deborah Sykes, a crime for which he always maintained his innocence
but served half his life in prison.
Hunt case damaged image of police, city, panel
says
Committee on racial healing will work to improve matters
The Darryl Hunt case caused people to mistrust the Winston-Salem Police Department
and the criminal-justice system, and damaged the city's image nationwide,
a new committee says.
Committee formed to study Hunt case to meet
in private
Members should feel free to 'open up,' mayor says
The committee formed by Mayor Allen Joines to study how the apparent wrongful
imprisonment of Darryl Hunt has affected the community will meet behind closed
doors.
Questions could linger after ruling on Hunt
Judge's decision set for Friday may not dispel uncertainty about
what happened
A Superior Court judge is expected to rule Friday on whether to overturn
Darryl Hunt's murder conviction in the 1984 rape and stabbing of Deborah
Sykes.
Panel ready to find lessons in Darryl Hunt case
Community leaders to look at effects, ways to fix them
A group of community leaders put together by Mayor Allen Joines of Winston-Salem
will begin next week studying how the apparent wrongful imprisonment of Darryl
Hunt has affected the community.
Local legal association to review convictions,
DNA tests
At the request of District Attorney Tom Keith, the Forsyth County Bar Association
will set up a panel to review claims of innocence from inmates who request
DNA testing in their cases. Keith said yesterday that he asked for the review
committee after new DNA evidence in the 1984 rape and murder of Deborah Sykes
led to the release last month of Darryl Hunt.
Keeping the Faith Alive
Focus of Martin Luther King Jr. Day is on justice, peace
Thousands of people, moved by such world issues as the war in Iraq and such
local ones as the recent release of Darryl Hunt, attended various Martin
Luther King Jr. Day events yesterday in Winston-Salem.
In Search of Healing
Forum at Wait Chapel focuses on Darryl Hunt case in a discussion of race
and injustice
Darryl Hunt, his attorney and two of his supporters discussed race, the judicial
system, faith, community healing and protest against injustice yesterday
at Wake Forest University.
KING DAY: Hunt will receive award
The Martin Luther King Jr. national holiday will be celebrated locally today
as Winston-Salem leaders look for racial healing in the community after Darryl
Hunt's release from prison in December.
More tests ordered in Sykes case
Investigators continue to look into possibility of more than one attacker
Additional DNA testing will be done in in the rape and killing of Deborah
Sykes, as authorities try to answer a question that may be impossible to
resolve: Was there ever a second attacker on West End Boulevard the morning
of Aug. 10, 1984?
Judge releases interview with Brown from 1986
Police questioned him in killing of Sykes
A judge released yesterday a 1986 police interview with Willard E. Brown,
the man whose arrest and confession in a downtown Winston-Salem killing brought
freedom last month to Darryl Hunt, who had been serving a life sentence.
Burke vows to review police conduct in Hunt
case, responding to concerns
Vivian Burke, a Winston-Salem City Council member, vowed to respond to community
concerns about police conduct in the investigation that led to the arrest
and imprisonment of Darryl Hunt.
For 18 Years, Groping for Truth
Errors, judicial rulings kept Darryl Hunt's attorneys from investigating
the man now charged in Deborah Sykes death
Police, prosecutors and judges had several chances over the past 18 years
to investigate the man now charged with the 1984 rape and murder of Deborah
Sykes.
On a Hunch
Rape victim's mother-in-law calls in tip, in hopes of helping free Hunt
One of the unsung heroes behind Darryl Hunt's release is a 73-year-old woman
who never let go of a 19-year-old hunch.
Regaining Footing On Open Ground
Hunt deals with the differences in life out of prison, works to seal
his freedom
Since he was freed a week ago after about 18 years in prison, Darryl Hunt
has cherished the little things - and struggled with them. A few days ago,
he said, his alarm went off at 5:30 a.m., about the time he usually awoke
while in prison.
Hunt case raises importance of search for police
chief, Burke says
The head of the Winston-Salem City Council's public-safety committee is suggesting
that the search for a new police chief be broadened in the wake of the Darryl
Hunt investigation.
Minister calls on DA to 'do right thing'
Sykes' mother has suffered mental torture and needs support, Hunt says
The fight to free Darryl Hunt is not over, the Rev. Carlton Eversley said
as Hunt and his wife visited Eversley's church yesterday in Winston-Salem. "We
pray that District Attorney Tom Keith will do the right thing," he said in
a prayer during the service.
TAKING STOCK: Mistakes made in Hunt's arrest,
conviction need to be examined, learned from, DA says
Throughout the negotiations last week that led to Darryl Hunt's release,
District Attorney Tom Keith appeared to be clinging to old theories that
could still tie Hunt to the 1984 murder of Deborah Sykes. But in an interview
Friday, Keith all but apologized for the mistakes that led to Hunt's imprisonment,
and he said that the justice system needs to learn from those mistakes.
'I always had faith'
Darryl Hunt walks out of prison to emotional homecoming
Darryl Hunt walked out of the Forsyth County Jail just before noon yesterday.
It was a defining moment in a complex murder case - the 1984 rape and stabbing
death of Deborah Sykes - that for nearly 20 years has divided Winston-Salem
along racial lines and cast doubt on the local justice system.
HE IS FREE: Hunt gives thanks to his supporters
His release had been planned for Tuesday night, but the deal between his
attorneys and Tom Keith, Forsyth County's district attorney, had collapsed.
So Darryl Hunt was a bit skeptical as he signed the papers required for his
release just after 11 yesterday morning.
State investigators agree to handle Sykes case
Winston-Salem police will offer their help, chief says
The Winston-Salem Police Department is letting the State Bureau of Investigation
take over the investigation of the new suspect in the murder of Deborah Sykes.
NEW REACTION: Sykes' mother says she is 'just
in shock'
News of Darryl Hunt's release reached Deborah Sykes' mother yesterday as
she was getting ready to leave work for the holidays.
Hunt release delayed
'We still have some more things to do,' district attorney says
After 18 years in prison, Darryl Hunt was poised for freedom late yesterday,
but the justice system kept him waiting at least one more day.
New clues throw out long-held theories
Charges highlight contradictions, flaws in prosecution's case
The charges against Willard E. Brown in the 1984 rape and murder of Deborah
Sykes all but destroy the theories that police and prosecutors had long held
in the crime.
Man charged in Sykes case
Willard Brown faces charges of murder, rape in 1984 killing; Hunt's status
unclear
District Attorney Tom Keith of Forsyth County yesterday defended his handling
of a new suspect in the 1984 murder of Deborah Sykes, while attorneys for
the man imprisoned for the crime prepared to file a court motion asking that
their client be freed.
A REQUEST: Mayor wants SBI to handle probe
Mayor Allen Joines and several Winston-Salem City Council members plan to
ask the State Bureau of Investigation to take the lead role in the investigation
of the 19-year-old murder of Deborah Sykes, which was re-opened this month
with the identification of a new suspect in the case.
DA defends handling of new suspect
Keith says he considers case still closed; Hunt's defense will ask that
he be released
District Attorney Tom Keith of Forsyth County yesterday defended his handling
of a new suspect in the 1984 murder of Deborah Sykes, while attorneys for
the man imprisoned for the crime prepared to file a court motion asking that
their client be freed.
DIVIDED: Pastor responds to Hunt case
From the pulpit of Emmanuel Baptist Church yesterday, on the last Sunday
before Christmas, the Rev. John Mendez spent some of his sermon on an old
topic - the issue of justice. He told his congregation he believed that Darryl
Hunt should be freed.
New suspect, new clues
Man was tied to a rape akin to Sykes case
A man who was picked out of a lineup but was never prosecuted in a downtown
rape six months after the murder of Deborah Sykes is the new suspect in that
case, law-enforcement sources said yesterday.
Marked Past: New suspect in Sykes case has prior
convictions
The man who authorities say they believe raped Deborah Sykes has spent time
in and out of jail and prison since he was a teen-ager. Willard Elliott Brown
is being held in the Forsyth County Jail, serving a 60-day sentence for a
probation violation.
Evidence stirs some angry reactions
Supporters call for Hunt's release; they want police, DA to step aside
from case
New evidence in the 1984 murder case that has divided Winston-Salem along
racial lines for more than 19 years brought new fire and passion yesterday
from groups of white and black supporters of Darryl Hunt.
New suspect in Hunt case
DNA testing returned a match, attorney says
State authorities said they have a new suspect in the 1984 murder case for
which Darryl Hunt has been in prison for 18 years.