Full Notification

Ventura, California – Ventura County District Attorney Gregory D. Totten and Simi Valley Police Chief David M. Livingstone announced today that they are supporting the clemency petition of Craig Richard Coley, age 70.

On the morning of November 11, 1978, 24-year-old Rhonda Wicht and her 4-year-old son Donald Wicht were found dead in her apartment in Simi Valley. Rhonda had been strangled, apparently with a macramé rope. Donald had been suffocated. Coley, with whom Rhonda had recently broken up, was arrested the same day and charged with the murders.

At the conclusion of the first trial on April 12, 1979, the jury hung 10-2 in favor of guilt. Coley was retried and on January 3, 1980, the jury found him guilty. On February 26, 1980, he was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. The conviction was affirmed on appeal by the Court of Appeal, and several habeas corpus petitions seeking his release were denied.

Simi Valley Police Chief Livingstone renewed an investigation into the case after consultation with retired Simi Police Detective Mike Bender, who had expressed concerns about Mr. Coley’s guilt. In October 2016, Simi Police began an investigation into the case, working together with the District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigation and Conviction Integrity Unit. Biological samples that had previously been thought to be lost or destroyed were found in the possession of a private laboratory, and advanced forensic analysis was conducted that was not available at the time of the trial. A key piece of evidence used to convict defendant was found to not contain his DNA, but to instead contain the DNA of other individuals. The investigation included review of thousands of pages of documents and interviews of numerous individuals, with interviews continuing as late as last week.

Reviewing the case in light of the new evidence, we no longer have confidence in the weight of the evidence used to convict Mr. Coley. We also believe that the evidence, as we now know it, would meet the legal standard for a finding of factual innocence.

As the United States Supreme Court recognized in Berger v. United States, the twofold aim of the prosecutor “is that guilt shall not escape nor innocence suffer.” To that end, the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office established a Conviction Integrity process in 2012 to review claims of factual innocence.

This case is tragic. An innocent woman and small child were murdered. Craig Coley has spent 39 years in custody for a crime he likely did not commit. The real murderer or murderers have not been brought to justice. Investigation is continuing to determine if it can be established that other(s) committed the murders.

Chief Livingstone, District Attorney Totten and members of their offices involved in this conviction integrity investigation will be available for in-person comment at the Simi Valley Police Department.

Press Conference at 4:00 pm: 3901 Alamo St. Simi Valley CA.