By Dena Potter
Associated Press
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- A Virginia death row inmate who claims he was wrongly convicted in the murder-for-hire of his marijuana supplier will try to convince a Norfolk federal judge this week that he is innocent.
An evidentiary hearing for Justin Michael Wolfe was scheduled to begin Tuesday to consider another man's claim that he alone killed 21-year-old Daniel Petrole Jr. in 2001. The judge also will consider sworn statements from others who say shooter Owen Barber IV told them he acted alone in killing Petrole.
Barber was the key witness in Wolfe's 2002 trial, which exposed a high-end marijuana distribution ring in the wealthy suburbs of northern Virginia. Barber agreed to plead guilty to first-degree murder and testify against Wolfe in exchange for a life sentence.
Barber recanted his testimony in 2005, but then changed his story again five months later and insisted his testimony at Wolfe's trial had been truthful.
U.S. District Judge Raymond A. Jackson in Norfolk granted the evidentiary hearing in February, saying there was enough evidence "to raise doubt in a reasonable juror's mind about the circumstances of the night of the murder."
According to testimony, Wolfe, now 29, was a 19-year-old drug dealer who made $10,000 to $15,000 each month selling high-end, or "chronic," marijuana he bought from Petrole. Wolfe had been friends since high school with Barber, who sold lower-grade marijuana.
At the time of Petrole's death, Wolfe owed Petrole approximately $60,000. Wolfe testified that wasn't unusual because Wolfe would take eight to 18 pounds of drugs at a time from Petrole, give him a down payment and pay the rest when the drugs were sold.
On March 15, 2001, after Petrole delivered drugs to Wolfe, Barber followed Petrole to his Bristow town home and shot him 10 times as he sat in his car.
Three weeks later, Barber was arrested in California. He testified that in exchange for killing Petrole, Wolfe forgave a $3,000 debt, gave him 5 1/2 pounds of marijuana and promised him an additional $10,000.
In 2005, Barber signed an affidavit recanting his trial testimony, saying, "Justin does not deserve to die for something he did not do." Barber said in the affidavit that he had intended to confront Petrole, but he thought he saw Petrole reach for a gun so he shot him. He said he implicated Wolfe to avoid the death penalty.
"The prosecution and my own defense attorney placed me in a position in which I felt that I had to choose between falsely testifying against Justin or dying," he said.
Months later, Barber changed his story again, saying his trial testimony was accurate.
"The truth was already told by me when I testified in court at Justin's trial," Barber wrote in a single, seven-sentence paragraph to Wolfe's lawyers. "I wish I could help Justin, but lieing (sic) is not the way."
Also in 2005, Wolfe's attorneys obtained affidavits from Carl Huff, Barber's former cellmate, and Jason Coleman, Barber's former roommate, saying Barber told them he acted alone.
Wolfe's attorneys also claim that Prince William County prosecutors withheld evidence that Barber's story had changed before, that interviews with him and others had been taped and that Coleman had told prosecutors that Barber said he acted alone. They also claim prosecutors prepared Barber and a friend for testifying together, allowing them to coordinate their stories.
Prince William County Commonwealth's Attorney Paul Ebert said those allegations are "not well taken."
"These folks that represent these people, they come up with just about anything they can to throw in the fire to see how it flies," Ebert said.
Wolfe's attorneys declined to comment on the case, saying only that the judge has several options. Even if Wolfe's murder-for-hire conviction is overturned, he likely would serve the rest of his more than 30-year sentence for drug and gun convictions.
Terri Steinberg, Wolfe's mother, said the family was "cautiously optimistic" going into the hearing, and grateful for the opportunity.
"It is the hands of the system, so it's a little scary," she said.
Steinberg, who campaigns against capital punishment, compared her son's case to that of Anthony Graves, who was freed from Texas' death row last week after 18 years. Graves was convicted for the 1992 slayings of six people based on the evidence of a co-defendant who later recanted before his own execution. An appeals court tossed Graves' conviction, and prosecutors decided last week to drop the case.
Steinberg said she remains hopeful that her son will come home soon.
"I'm not going to let them take my hope away," she said. "My faith is in God, not the system. I certainly hope the system works."
Published: Wed, Nov 3, 2010
