Las Vegas Jury Finds Detectives Fabricated Evidence Against Woman Who Spent 15 Years in Prison for Murder and Awards Her $34 Million
by James Mills
A Nevada jury ruled that two Las Vegas homicide detectives fabricated evidence against a local woman in a 2001 murder. Kirstin “Blaise” Lobato was awarded more than $34 million in a verdict which was read aloud on December 12, 2024.
The jury awarded Lobato $34 million in compensatory damages and $20,000 in punitive damages. She gasped upon hearing the verdict and began crying and embracing her attorneys.
She spoke to reporters outside the courthouse while smiling widely. “It’s been an uphill battle with many, many obstacles” she said. “I’m happy that it’s all finally finished.”
The jury found that Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Detectives Thomas Towsen and James Rochelle fabricated evidence against Lobato, intentionally inflicting “emotional distress.”
She served 15 years in prison and was only released in 2018, after the district attorney’s office declined to bring her to trial for a third time. A judge vacated her second conviction, ruling that she had received ineffective assistance of counsel, after new evidence was presented showing that Lobato had been at her parents’ home in Panaca, Nevada, when Bailey was killed. Panaca is located more than 100 miles away from Las Vegas. On October 30, 2024, a court issued a certificate of innocence, declaring Lobato innocent of Bailey’s murder.
Lobato’s attorneys accused both detectives of framing her for the murder of Duran Bailey who was found dead in 2001, beaten and mutilated. In their closing arguments, Lobato’s attorneys claimed that either the detectives knew that Lobato was innocent or were indifferent to the possibility of her innocence. In either case, they violated evidentiary rules. “What happened to Blaise Lobato is unjust, and we’re asking you to right that injustice,” one of her attorneys said in closing.
Source: reviewjournal.com
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