He aims to have his 1981 conviction overturned. The conviction relates to a robbery incident at the Vernon Stars Rod and Gun Club in Mount Vernon. During the robbery, three individuals were injured by shotgun pellets, and patrons were relieved of their cash and jewelry.
Throughout his nearly eight-year incarceration, Koonce has steadfastly maintained his innocence. Westchester County District Attorney Mimi Rocah supports Koonce's bid to clear his name, citing issues with the case uncovered by her office.
Rocah's Conviction Review Unit meticulously examined the 1983 conviction. Their investigation revealed evidence suggesting that Mount Vernon police exerted undue pressure on the sole eyewitness to identify Koonce. Furthermore, they manipulated the photo array by enlarging Koonce's picture and failed to interview witnesses who could corroborate Koonce's alibi.
According to Rocah, a Mount Vernon detective involved in the case provided false testimony regarding the photo arrays during pretrial hearings and Koonce's trial. This led to a court order compelling the department to revise its photo identification practices. One of the detectives implicated in Koonce's case was later incarcerated following a federal corruption investigation.
In an official statement, Rocah asserted that Koonce's conviction was irrevocably compromised due to questionable investigative practices and procedures, leading her office to withdraw its support for the conviction.
Koonce, accompanied by his legal counsel, Karen Newirth, is expected to appear before Westchester County Judge James McCarty on Friday. They will formally request the dismissal of Koonce's robbery and weapons possession convictions and the underlying indictment.
Newirth expressed her satisfaction, stating that this day marks the culmination of a 41-year injustice and that Koonce is finally being exonerated in court. She commended DA Mimi Rocah and her team for their dedication to ensuring justice for Koonce.
Newspaper reports from the time indicate that Koonce fled the court during jury deliberations and was apprehended approximately seven months later at his girlfriend's apartment in the Bronx.
Koonce received a sentence of 7½ to 15 years for the robbery and a concurrent, shorter sentence for absconding. He was granted parole in August 1992. His brother, Paul, who was in high school at the time, was also charged in connection with the robbery but was acquitted.
Malcolm Koonce was born in 1998 and was drafted by the NFL's Raiders in 2021. Another of Jeffrey Koonce's sons, Dejuan Koonce, is a retired New York State Trooper who served on protective details for Governor Kathy Hochul and former Governor Andrew Cuomo.
Law enforcement officials alleged that Jeffrey and Paul Koonce were among the three individuals who robbed the Vernon Stars club on June 20, 1981. Patrons were forced to the ground and robbed of approximately $500 in cash, jewelry, and other valuables.
According to police reports, one of the robbers was armed with a sawed-off shotgun and discharged it at least twice, injuring a 15-year-old and two other patrons.
Rocah's office concluded that detectives employed questionable tactics to coerce a victim into identifying Koonce as the shooter. He was the sole individual to make such an identification. Other witnesses informed investigators that the dimly lit conditions within the club made it impossible to identify the perpetrators.
The witness, a high school freshman at the time, selected Koonce from a photo array. Koonce's photo was conspicuously larger than the others in the array, which featured individuals who did not resemble him.
The witness later informed Rocah's office that he had no recollection of seeing any faces in the darkened club and that other patrons shielded him immediately after the shooting, obstructing his view.
Detectives subsequently transported Koonce to the hospital where the witness was receiving treatment, attempting to obtain an in-person identification. The witness revealed during a pretrial hearing that he felt pressured to identify Koonce quickly. The trial judge deemed this tactic "impermissibly suggestive."
Furthermore, Rocah's office determined that Mount Vernon detectives compromised Koonce's case by neglecting to interview all of his alibi witnesses. These witnesses included a now-retired New York City police detective who asserted that Koonce was with him in the city on the night of the robbery.
