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D.L. Anderson
Irvin Broussard was released from prison on June 1, after being held 58 days after the N.C. Court of Appeals overturned his conviction.
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In his written order, Stephens found that 58 days was not a reasonable time for Broussard to be held while Ellis resolved the case. He said Ellis had "a professional and ethical duty" to handle the case in a timely fashion. Stephens also blamed court clerks for failing to notify the district attorney's office and other departments that Broussard's case needed to be resolved, but said he found no evidence that anyone involved delayed Broussard's release intentionally.
Stephens also said that there aren't any local policies governing the specific actions a clerk or prosecutor must take to ensure that cases sent back from the N.C. Court of Appeals are handled in a timely fashion. He ordered District Attorney Tracey Cline and Clerk of Court Archie Smith to establish policies governing the process and what each person in the process is responsible for, and submit the policies to Durham's Senior Resident Superior Court Judge, Orlando Hudson, for review.
It's unclear how soon those policies might be crafted and implemented. Cline has not yet responded to a request for comment.
Kapur had requested that Ellis, who recently left the Durham district attorney's office, be sanctioned, but Stephens dismissed that request. At the time of the Indy's first story on Broussard, Ellis reported that she was leaving Durham in July to take a job with the N.C. Innocence Inquiry Commission.