June 16, 2021
At the age of 18 Troy was arrested for murder by former Pittsburgh Police detective Richard McDonald, who illegally coerced Joseph into signing a confession fabricated and written by the detective himself. Joseph alleged that his constitutional rights were violated and to this day, that "confession" remains the sole evidence of his guilt.
Troy G. Joseph has been fighting for justice for over 20 years and has discovered four eyewitnesses (sworn statements provided), including the D.A.'s only eyewitness Wakeel Abdullah, who was prevented from providing testimony at Joseph's trial. Abdullah had placed two other suspects at the crime scene,suspects that were never investigated.
Troy Joseph maintains his innocence and explains that as a teen he was "victimized by former detective Richard McDonald's trickery in violation of the United States and Pennsylvania Constitutions. McDonald was not interested in the truth, but only in the arrest and conviction, even at the cost of sending poor, innocent boys to prison for the rest of their lives."
Troy notes that false confessions aren't anomalies but an integral tactic in perpetuating injustice. He reminds us that men such as Keith Bush, Anton McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, and Corey Wise otherwise known as the "Central Park Five" were victims of false confessions. Recently, in Pennsylvania Jarvis Payton, Dwayne Thorpe, and Nafis Pinckney were released after criminal/civil convictions were levied against the officers in their individual cases.
After Josephs trial in 2000, Clyde Mann's filed a lawsuit against McDonald and the City of Pittsburgh for violating his constitutional rights during his interrogation. Along with other misconduct, McDonald attempted to have Mann's sign a manufactured confession. Mann's was awarded $25,000, Troy Joseph wishes to be paid in freedom.
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