Robert DuBoise is set to receive $14m from the city of Tampa as compensation for all the lost 37 years he spent in jail over a rape and murder he did not commit dated back in 1983.
Due to DNA testing that was not available in the early 1980s, DuBoise was freed from prison in 2020 after it was determined that two other men were involved in the killing. Shortly after, DuBoise filed lawsuits against the city of Tampa, the investigating police officers, and a forensic dentist who had attested to the fact that his teeth matched the victim’s alleged bite mark.
When DuBoise was said to have killed 19-year-old Barbara Grams, he was first given the death penalty. DuBoise was 18 at the time of the crime. It wasn’t until 2018 that prosecutors decided to reexamine the case, despite the fact that his sentence was eventually lowered to life in prison with the assistance of the Innocence Project organization.
Though the lawsuit was settled on January 11, the $14 million award to DuBoise, who is currently 59 years old, was formally approved by the Tampa City Council on Thursday with a unanimous vote. The money, according to council members, is the least the city could have done for him.
“This was a big wrong, I hope and pray this settlement will give him some measure of comfort.” says council member Luis Viera.
DuBoise and his law firm will get $9 million this year, $3 million next year and $2 million in 2026, according to city documents.
In August 1983, Grams was tragically sexually assaulted and fatally beaten while walking home from her job at a Tampa restaurant. The investigation took a controversial turn when a medical examiner identified a wound on her cheek as a bite mark, prompting investigators to collect bite samples from multiple individuals, including DuBoise. Notably, beeswax was used to create an impression of the wound.
A forensic dentist subsequently attributed the bite mark to DuBoise, despite his lack of acquaintance with Grams but his frequent presence in the vicinity where her body was discovered. However, during DuBoise’s lawsuit, the same dentist testified that he no longer believes bite marks can definitively identify an individual, casting doubt on the initial forensic analysis.
Decades later, DNA testing implicated Amos Robinson and Abron Scott, both of whom are already serving life sentences for another murder. Both individuals are now awaiting trial on first-degree murder charges related to Grams’ case. Additionally, the credibility of a prison informant’s testimony, which allegedly incriminated DuBoise, was subsequently dismissed. Despite DuBoise’s contentions of intentional misconduct by the police, the city denied any wrongdoing by its officers as part of the settlement.
