Raymond Carter (convict)
Encyclopedia
Raymond Carter achieved notoriety for being the subject of a murder case that arose in the aftermath of the 39th District corruption scandal
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
, resulting in his release from prison on December 30, 1996. Key figures in his conviction (and release) were PPD
officer Thomas Ryan and Pamela Jenkins, who also played roles in the more famous trial
of Mumia Abu-Jamal
.
Ten years later, as Ryan's reputation began to unravel after his conviction on a federal corruption charge related to the 39th district scandal, Jenkins came forward and asserted that she had been paid $500 by a group of PPD officers, including Ryan, to testify against Carter. This resulted in Common Pleas Court Judge Joseph I. Papalini throwing out Carter's first-degree murder conviction in late 1996, stating that it was simply impossible to determine whether Carter had killed Harris, and ordering a new trial.
39th District corruption scandal
The 39th District corruption scandal refers to a persistent pattern of brutality and corruption among a cadre Philadelphia Police Department officers, primarily from the department's 39th district, that emerged in late 1995 and received nationwide attention by 1997, eventually resulting in an...
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, resulting in his release from prison on December 30, 1996. Key figures in his conviction (and release) were PPD
Philadelphia Police Department
The Philadelphia Police Department is the police agency responsible for law enforcement and investigations within the City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
officer Thomas Ryan and Pamela Jenkins, who also played roles in the more famous trial
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. Mumia Abu-Jamal
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. Mumia Abu-Jamal was a 1982 murder trial in which Mumia Abu-Jamal was tried and convicted for the first-degree murder of police officer Daniel Faulkner....
of Mumia Abu-Jamal
Mumia Abu-Jamal
Mumia Abu-Jamal was convicted of the 1981 murder of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner and sentenced to death. He has been described as "perhaps the world's best known death-row inmate", and his sentence is one of the most debated today...
.
Synopsis
Carter, a former heroin dealer, was sentenced in 1988 to life imprisonment for the slaying of Robert "Puppet" Harris, of North Graz Street, at the Pike Bar in North Philadelphia on September 18, 1986. His conviction was secured largely on the testimony of one Pamela Jenkins, who testified that she saw Carter pick up a gun and fire at Harris from a distance of about three feet.Ten years later, as Ryan's reputation began to unravel after his conviction on a federal corruption charge related to the 39th district scandal, Jenkins came forward and asserted that she had been paid $500 by a group of PPD officers, including Ryan, to testify against Carter. This resulted in Common Pleas Court Judge Joseph I. Papalini throwing out Carter's first-degree murder conviction in late 1996, stating that it was simply impossible to determine whether Carter had killed Harris, and ordering a new trial.