July 07, 2022
Firm files lawsuits on behalf of John Walker and Darryl Boyd, two surviving members of the Buffalo Five
The firm and co-counsel WilmerHale filed federal lawsuits on behalf of John Walker and Darryl Boyd, two surviving members of the Buffalo Five who were wrongfully convicted of murder in 1976. The lawsuits seek a total of $224 million against the City of Buffalo, the County of Erie, and several former detectives for causing Walker and Boyd to spend a total of 50 years in prison and another 40 years on parole. The complaints allege that Buffalo detectives coerced two teenage friends of Walker and Boyd to testify falsely against them, knowing the testimony was false. The complaints further allege that the Buffalo Police Department and the Erie County District Attorney’s Office concealed powerful evidence that a neighbor of the murder victim committed the crime.
Walker and Boyd are represented by the Law Offices of Joel B. Rudin and WilmerHale. The Buffalo News reported on the filings in a front-page story here. Buffalo television channels and radio stations covered the press conference today announcing the lawsuits here, here, here, here, and here. You can read the complaints here and here.