FORSYTH COUNTY, N.C. — The murder of NBA star Chris Paul's grandfather is being brought back to the forefront, 20 years after his death.
On Monday, a three-judge panel in Forsyth County began listening to the evidence surrounding the killing of Paul's grandfather, Nathaniel Jones. In November 2002, Jones, 61, was beaten to death, just a day after a then 17-year-old Paul signed on to play basketball for Wake Forest University.
Five teenagers were arrested in the case.
The North Carolina Center on Actual Innocence said four of the men should be exonerated in Jones' murder after an N.C. Innocence Inquiry Commission found evidence of their innocence. The fifth person who was convicted died back in 2019.
Two years after Jones' death, brothers Rayshawn Banner and Nathaniel Cauthen were convicted of murder and robbery. In 2005, three others were also held accountable for the death. All five were teens at the time of their arrest and have stood by their innocence. Since then, these five teens have been referred to as the “Winston-Salem 5."
Watch below: WFMY's archive story on the murder of Chris Paul's grandfather
The state said one person couldn't have beaten this man and that these teens had more than 100 run-ins with the law.
"These aren’t your average 14- and 15-year-olds. Before the murder, they had a collective, more than 140 contacts with law enforcement," state officials said. "Evidence of factual innocence is not what you have before you."
In 2020, an eight-member panel of N.C. Innocence Inquiry Commission held a hearing to review the innocence claims. At the hearing, a key witness recanted her testimony. She said she lied in court because law enforcement pressured her.
No DNA testing was done during the pretrial, even though DNA testing was available in 2002.
The defense said it believes it was a coerced compliant false confession and that is why the boys confessed to the murder.
"We are here to prove they are innocent, and we are confident that it'll be ruled that they are," the defense said.
Based on how much the courts have changed in reference to juveniles, the evidence would not be admissible in court in 2022 as it was in 2002, the defense said.
The Commission found "sufficient evidence of innocence to merit judicial review."
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