ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — An Orange County woman said she lost more than a year of her life in prison because someone stole her identity.
Carisa Woodson, a single mother of seven, said she filed a stolen identity report with Orlando police, but 9 Investigates uncovered the report was never presented at trial.
Woodson spent 16 months in prison over a fake $215 check that someone used to steal groceries from a Kissimmee Publix.
“I have never made any fake checks in my life. I have never even been to Kissimmee," Woodson said.
But the fake check had her name and address on it, so she was charged in the crime.
Woodson had an identification card but said she didn't realize it was missing until she got a debt collection notice from Publix She said she called police to report the ID theft, but that crucial piece of evidence was never presented at trial.
However, distant surveillance video was shown to the jury, and a cashier picked Woodson out of a photo lineup. But she blames her public defender, Sasha Weitzner, for the guilty verdict.
“We never sat down and talked about my case,” said Woodson. “He never returned my calls.”
Weitzner couldn't answer WFTV’s questions because of the attorney-client privilege.
WFTV legal analyst Bill Shaeffer read through the court transcripts and said the police report would have bolstered Woodson's credibility.
“If there is a case that I have reviewed in the last year and a half that deserves the attention of review, it is this case,” Sheaffer said. “This woman may well be innocent.”
Transcripts show Woodson’s attorney first learned about the police report when he heard her testify. But Shaeffer said even then, it was his duty to get a copy of the report
“This attorney did not practice at the level of a criminal defense attorney in this community by failing to investigate this case properly,” said Sheaffer.
Apparently, the judge agreed. Transcripts reveal he told Weitzner, “Certainly the lawyers should know how to obtain a police report from an agency. It’s available to both the state and the defense even on the day of trial.”
“I think the judge was right. My attorney should have gotten that police report and I probably never would have gone to prison for a crime I didn't commit,” said Woodson.
Woodson got out of prison four months ago and hired Paula Coffman.
“The time she spent in prison, we can’t get back for her, but hopefully we can clear her name,” said Coffman.
Coffman is working pro bono. She plans to file an ineffective counsel motion in the next few months. The State Attorney’s Office said it would review the case if Coffman makes that request.