The Central Park Jogger Case
Five teenagers confessed under interrogation to an attack none of them committed. It took another man's confession, and his DNA, thirteen years later, to prove it.
- First reportNYPD, prosecutors, and the New York tabloid press
"Wilding" teens attack Central Park jogger
A woman jogging in Central Park was beaten and raped, left in a coma. Five Black and Latino teenagers — Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, and Korey Wise — were interrogated for hours without adequate access to parents or counsel and gave confessions that were later shown to be coerced, inconsistent with each other, and unsupported by the physical evidence.
PBS, "Conviction and Exoneration," The Central Park Five (Ken Burns) ↗ - UpdateDonald Trump, full-page newspaper advertisements
"BRING BACK THE DEATH PENALTY"
Real-estate developer Donald Trump took out full-page ads in four New York newspapers referencing the case and calling for the death penalty, before any trial had taken place.
CBS News, "'Central Park Five' were exonerated of rape, but not in Donald Trump's eyes" ↗ - UpdateNew York Supreme Court
Four convicted at trial; Wise convicted separately
Despite no forensic evidence connecting any of them to the crime and DNA at the scene that did not match any of the five, four of the teenagers were convicted based substantially on their confessions; Wise, tried separately, was convicted soon after. All five served full sentences, six to thirteen years.
PBS, "Conviction and Exoneration," The Central Park Five (Ken Burns) ↗ - RetractionNew York Supreme Court
Convictions vacated after another man confesses and DNA matches
Matias Reyes, already serving time for other rapes and a murder, confessed to the Central Park attack and said he had acted alone. His DNA matched evidence from the scene that had never matched any of the five. A judge vacated all five convictions.
Britannica, "How were the Central Park Five exonerated?" ↗ - AftermathCity of New York
$41 million settlement
The city settled the five men's lawsuit for malicious prosecution and racial discrimination for $41 million, more than two decades after their arrests.
CBS News, "'Central Park Five' were exonerated of rape, but not in Donald Trump's eyes" ↗ - AftermathDonald Trump, to CNN
"They admitted they were guilty"
Fourteen years after the convictions were vacated by DNA evidence and another man's confession, Trump told CNN the men were guilty regardless, calling the city's settlement "outrageous" — a reminder that a fully proven correction doesn't automatically overwrite the version that ran first.
CBS News, "'Central Park Five' were exonerated of rape, but not in Donald Trump's eyes" ↗
What it teaches
This is the clearest case here that a correction, however total, doesn't automatically replace the version of the story that ran first. A confession, a DNA match, a vacated conviction, and a $41 million settlement weren't enough. Some people simply keep the original.