Judge is asked to order immunity for hit man

By Ed White Associated Press DETROIT (AP) -- A young man who claims he lied when he admitted killing four people in a drug house in 2007 wants to prove his innocence by having a judge compel testimony from a Detroit hit man already in prison for eight murders. Davontae Sanford believes he would be cleared of any role in the so-called Runyon Street murders if Vincent Smothers testified under a grant of limited immunity. Sanford, 18, has been trying to persuade Judge Brian Sullivan to throw out his guilty plea to four murders in Detroit. He says he was lying and simply trying to please police when he was just 14 years old. Smothers, 29, subsequently told police that he was responsible for the Runyon Street killings but has never been charged. He pleaded guilty last year to eight other homicides and is serving 52 years in prison. Smothers "would testify that he did not know Davontae in September of 2007. And that he had no family, gang or any other connection to Davontae," Sanford's lawyer, Kim McGinnis, said in a recent court filing. "Direct testimony from the actual perpetrator is essential for Davontae to demonstrate conclusively his actual innocence," she said. McGinnis wants the judge to take an extraordinary step: Tell prosecutors that Smothers' words would not be used against him if he testified. Sullivan will hold a hearing Friday, one of many over the past two years. The Wayne County prosecutor's office opposes the immunity request. Despite Smothers' confession to police, it has not backed away from Sanford's guilty plea to second-degree murder. It's possible that Sanford didn't shoot anybody on Runyon Street, but Smothers would be committing perjury if he testified that Sanford was not present, assistant prosecutor Thomas Chambers said. Sanford isn't eligible for parole until 2046 when he is 53. Published: Thu, Mar 3, 2011