THE WRONGFUL CONVICTION OF GEORGIA INMATE
JERRY BIGGS, JR.
"I didn't like to think about what that could do to the soul of a human being, to have to sit in a prison cell day after day for a crime you had not committed. And nothing to look forward to at the end of a day but the knowledge of hundreds more days like the one you just endured."
- Elizabeth Loftus, Psychologist
In 1983 Jerry Biggs and Leah Murphy were married. During the coarse of their marriage they had four children - Christian, Cori, Justin and Amanda. It was not until Leah was pregnant with their fourth child that the couple started having serious problems. Certain members of Leah's family suffered from paranoid schizophrenia and she was beginning to exhibit signs of the same disorder. She felt as though she were constantly being followed, accused Jerry of having her followed by the police and constantly thought people were talking about her. Eventually, after the birth of their fourth child, Leah began working again. However, she was still showing signs of paranoia and began having problems on the job. Additionally, Leah accused Jerry’s mother of giving the baby sleeping medication so the baby would sleep during the day and keep Leah up at night. Jerry became very concerned for his wife's well-being, but if he discussed the issue or suggested that she get help Leah would get very aggitated and extremely defensive. Within a few months, she took the children and moved into her mother’s house.
Leah told Jerry that she and the children would only move back in with him under certain conditions. She wanted him to quit school and his job so he could stay home with the children and take care of the house. She also insisted that he no longer have any contact with his family. Because he did not want to lose his children, and convinced that Leah was suffering from some sort of breakdown, Jerry reluctantly conceded to her demands. He believed that if he could take care of the children and the house it would relieve Leah of that responsibility and she would be okay. But despite complying with all of her conditions, Leah took the kids and left for the final time.
In February of 1993, Leah filed for divorce. This marked the beginning of a long drawn out divorce procedure. Jerry had full visitation rights to his children, but Leah and her family made it very difficult to see them. Jerry was given his old job back, but due to his hours he was not able to be at Leah's mother's house at 6:00 p.m. on the evening that he was supposed to pick up the children. If he was not there right at 6 o'clock, Leah would refuse to allow him visitation. Jerry would try to call and talk to his children but he was constantly told that if Leah's mother was home he could not talk to them. Leah's mother, Marion Murphy, once told him that she was going to make sure he never got to see his children again and that they would grow up to hate him. However, when Marion was not at the house, Leah would allow the children to speak to their father. On one occasion, Jerry saw Leah and the children at their oldest son's baseball game. Leah allowed him to visit with the children and hold their youngest child who he had not seen in quite some time.
The divorce proceedings continued to drag on and during this time Jerry had only one stipulation when it came to his children -they could not be left alone with Leah’s brother, Daniel Murphy. Danny had sexually molested Leah when she was a child and Jerry feared that his children would suffer the same fate if they were left alone with him. Shortly after Jerry entered this stipulation into the divorce proceedings, Leah countered and stated that Jerry’s mother could not be left alone with the children. There was no talk of any abuse at this time.
The court had ordered Jerry to return some marital assets to Leah, which he did a few weeks before a mediation hearing. While he was at Leah's mother's house delivering the items he had the opportunity to see his children. During the visit, he found out that the children were being left alone with Leah's brother, Danny. Jerry was outraged and told Leah that he would fight her for full custody. It was only after this declaration from Jerry that any mention of abuse was made. This was done during the mediation hearing on June 16, 1993.
The Department of Family and Children’s Services were again involved. Leah had taken the children to have them evaluated. The children were met with and an investigation was opened, but soon closed because Jerry was found to have done nothing wrong. At this point, Leah's motives were questioned. The case was opened and closed once again after the mediation hearing. Similar to the first review, they could not determine any wrong doing on Jerry's part.
The children were being sent to counselors. According to Christian, the couple's oldest child, he and his siblings were told that their father had left them, did not want them and did not love them. They were not aware of the battle that was going on. It was only after one of the counselors contacted The Department of Family and Children’s Services did they open the case for the final time. However, the case would not be closed because Christian had made statements that he had been sexually abused.
Subsequent to Christian's allegations, Jerry was told that any visitation he had with the children must be supervised. His attorney advised him not to agree to terms, claiming that it would make it seem like Jerry was admitting that he had done something wrong. A few days later, a warrant was issued for Jerry's arrest. He was charged with aggravated sodomy and cruelty to children in June of 1994. It would be almost two more years before this case went to trial and, during this time, Jerry was not allowed any contact with his children. He did send them a Christmas card and some money as a gift but was re-arrested shortly thereafter for doing so.
The trial took place in May of 1996. Jerry’s attorney told him that the State had no case against him. Accordingly, they did not prepare a proper defense. Jerry’s attorney did not have the children evaluated and had no experts to testify on Jerry's behalf. It was a one sided trial that ultimately resulted in Jerry's conviction on two counts for Christian (one count of aggravated child molestation and one count of child molestation) and two counts for Cori (one count of aggravated child molestation and one count of child molestation). Christian and Cori were both put on the stand. Christian knew what he was supposed to say but Cori was too young and just did what she was told. But she told the truth. Even though there was no evidence against Jerry to substantiate Cori's claims and she testified that her father had never harmed her in any way, he was still convicted for crimes against her.
A little over a year later, Christian was able to get away from his family and contact one of Jerry’s brothers. Christian told his uncle that he had lied about all of the abuse allegations and had to let someone know. Christian met with an investigator and Jerry’s new attorney and an interview was conducted. An appeal was submitted, but denied. Christian has been fighting for his father's freedom ever since.
Cori, too, is on her father’s side. She is now an adult and has been contacting as many people as she can to advocate for Jerry's release but no one will listen. Both children have stood by the claim that their father is innocent but according the our judicial system the people who are considered victims do not have a voice in this matter. They want "new" concrete evidence, which is virtually impossible to provide when there was no evidence to substantiate these claims in the first place.
Christian was the only one of the children that testified against his father. His sister Cori and brother Justin were also put on the witness stand to testify but never said a thing against their father. Christian has since recanted his trial testimony, signed an affadavit, he has written numerous letters to the Cobb County District Attorney’s office, the Governor, the Parole Board, the Clemency Board, and to the Judge. He has so far as to take a polygraph test to prove that he lied on the stand and that his father has never harmed him and in 2010 tried to have himself arrested on perjury charges. All of this, however, does not seem to be enough.
Jerry Biggs, Jr. is an innocent man who has already served over 15 years in prison because he tried to protect his children from a man he knew would harm them. Unfortunately, when Jerry was found guilty and began his prison sentence, Daniel Murphy molested Jerry's two daughters. Cori remembers every detail of the molestation and has to live with what has happened to her every day because the state took away the one person who was trying to protect her. He knew that Daniel Murphy was dangerous and even after he was incarcerated Jerry tried to keep this man away from his children; but no one would listen. Daniel Murphy admitted that he molested both of Jerry's girls. He spent a little more than 2 years in prison and is currently back out on the street while the children's father is still behind bars for a crime that he did not commit. Jerry's first appearance before the State Board of Pardons and Paroles is in 2030. His release date is scheduled for March 1, 2041. He will be 78 years old.