ABSTRACT
I was really surprised by this conclusion. Two of Gillispie’s friends had testified at trial that they had been with Dean on the day of the rapes. However, the written camp registration records to support this testimony could have tipped the scales for Dean. Eyewitness testimony from victims is not easily discredited. Without the records, it was a classic case of “he said, she said.” In the Clarence Elkins case, we had seen that the alibi testimony of someone close to the defendant-in this case, his wife-is often trumped by the victim’s eyewitness testimony. In our view, supporting recorded documentation could definitely strengthen the testimony of alibi witnesses and make a difference in the trial’s outcome.
