Ajay Dev, 58, was released May 23 after 16 years in prison for 76 convictions of sexual assault on a minor and related charges, the San Francisco Chronicle reported Tuesday.
Superior Court Judge Janene Beronio scheduled a hearing for June 13 for Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig to decide whether to retry Dev. Prosecutors could also appeal the ruling. Reisig’s office declined to comment on the case.
Dev, an immigrant from Nepal who worked as a water engineer, was visiting the South Asian nation with his wife in 1998 when they decided to adopt 15-year-old Sapna Dev, part of their extended family, and bring her to live with them in Davis, California.
Four witnesses who had not been contacted by Dev’s trial lawyers testified at a recent hearing that Sapna Dev had told them that her accusations against him were lies or were motivated by her anger at him, the Chronicle reported.
No legal system is immune to miscarriages of justice. Is it better to imprison real accusers, or falsely accused offenders?
I would say there needs to be a trial for the accuser. If it can be proven beyond a reasonable doubt, she should see justice.