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Roosevelt Glenn, Darryl Pinkins: Car Bump Rape Case In Hammond On CBS ’48 Hours’

By Traciy Reyes
Published on: 05:12 PST, Feb 4, 2017

You won’t want to skip this week’s 48 Hours on CBS. The documentary crime show will be about a case that rocked Hammond, Indiana, in the late 1980s. Authorities say there was a rash of bumped cars, which led to the robberies and rapes of young women in the city. Two men were convicted in those crimes: Roosevelt Glenn and Darryl Pinkins. On 48 Hours‘ episode “Guilty Until Proven Innocent.” Roosevelt and Darryl will speak about their case and vehemently profess their innocence. Both men, who were wrongfully convicted for the crime they didn’t commit, are now free. Darryl Pinkins’ family members will also speak to 48 Hours.

48 Hours Coverage: Night Of Terror On The Roads of Hammond

In 1989, it was a scary time to be in Hammond, Indiana. During that year, there was a break out of robberies and rapes that plagued the city. The suspect’s M.O. was the same–to bump the car of an unsuspecting female while on the road, and then to rob and sexually assault the women once they got out to check on the cars.

The city of Hammond wanted arrests, and they wanted them fast. The racial element to the crime provoked anger and fear among residents. The latest victim told police that she left the bar after a night of drinking and drove away in her car. At some point while she was on the road, a mysterious stranger bumped her car. What she did next is what many people would do: she got out of her car to see what happened.

Once she exited the vehicle, her worst nightmare came true. She was grabbed and raped by five black men. Circumstantial evidence from the scene, along with the victim’s identification and statements, led detectives to identify five black men who were the most likely suspects. Out of the five, only two were ultimately convicted.

Those two men, Roosevelt Glenn and Darryl Pinkins, had always said they didn’t do it. Glenn said that he was shocked that he was found guilty, stating that he could never rape anyone. It’s just not something that he could do. For Darryl Pinkins, being convicted and sentenced to 35 years in prison was like a death sentence to him. In the interview, he recalls a time when he wanted to end his own life.

To get out of prison, they were going to need more than just their word. And when a university professor and her students decided to take a look at the case, it would be their saving grace, according to The Indiana Lawyer.

“The men were convicted by slim evidence, including the victim’s single identification made five months after the crime, testimony based on a faulty hair comparison and the use of serology inclusion evidence. Both Glenn and Pinkins had their cases picked up by the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney Wrongful Conviction Clinic. Professor Fran Watson and her students represented the pair beginning in 1999 after received a referral from the Innocence Project.”

On 48 Hours, you’ll hear that the DNA evidence in the case didn’t match Roosevelt Glenn or Darryl Pinkins, proving that they should never have been convicted in the first place. About this, DNA expert Greg Hampikian states the following, according to Broadway World.

“When it’s not you in the DNA, it’s not you. Nothing to talk about, and everybody knew it before trial.”

Prosecutors in the case stated they were sure they had the right men. Law enforcement detectives will also participate in the upcoming episode.

Darryl Pinkins was finally released from prison in 2016. Roosevelt Glenn was released in 2009, The Indiana Lawyer states.

To hear more about their wrongful conviction, tune into 48 Hours tonight at 10/9 p.m. Central on CBS.

[Featured Image by seanlean/Shutterstock]

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