Wyandotte County judge vacates man’s murder conviction after finding evidence was withheld
KANSAS CITY, Kan. (KCTV) - More than 15 years after he was sentenced to prison for murder, a Kansas City man’s conviction has been vacated after a judge ruled his constitutional rights were violated.
The Midwest Innocence Project (MIP) says now-34-year-old Cedric Warren was wrongfully convicted of a murder that happened when he was 18.
Warren’s charges stemmed from a double homicide that took place on Feb. 13, 2009, when two men, Larry LeDoux and Charles Ford, were found shot to death.
Although no physical evidence tied Warren to the crime, MIP stated, the prosecution used evidence from a witness with “severe mental illness.” Further, they did not disclose the witness’s mental state to Warren’s defense attorney.
According to MIP, the witness told police someone named “Ced,” had committed the crime, but later said he only gave that name because detectives told it to him. Throughout the trial, the witness continued to provide contradictory testimonies about what he saw and heard on the day of the murders.
MIP said the State withheld the knowledge that the witness “heard voices, had serious memory issues, and was determined to be incompetent to stand trial in a criminal case, just a few years before Cedric’s arrest.”
On Dec. 9, 2024, Judge Aaron Roberts found that the prosecution violated Brady v. Maryland, which requires full disclosure of information that could prove someone’s innocence. MIP said Roberts further noted that “any competent defense attorney would have used the undisclosed evidence to attack the sole witness’ credibility.”
Roberts did not rule on Warren’s innocence and denied a motion to release him on bond. Instead, Warren must wait for the District Attorney’s Office to either dismiss the case or decide to retry it, a choice they must make within the next 30 days.
The Wyandotte County District Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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