Muncie man walks free after rape conviction set aside
MUNCIE, Ind. – For the first time in nearly a quarter-century, William E. Barnhouse on Wednesday walked outside, into the sunshine, a free man.
Delaware Circuit Court 2 Judge Kimberly Dowling granted a joint motion – by local prosecutors and attorneys with the Innocence Project – to set aside Barnhouse’s 1992 convictions for rape and criminal deviate conduct.
After being convicted at the conclusion of a December 1992 trial, Barnhouse, now 60, received an 80-year prison term from then-Judge Richard Dailey.
“He has spent a quarter of a century incarcerated for a crime he did not commit,” Seema Saifee – an attorney with the Innocence Project, a non-profit organization that has exonerated more than 300 convicted felons through DNA results – said at Wednesday’s hearing.
Saifee told Dowling the case was made more tragic because “William has suffered from mental illness his entire life. ...
“He never gave up hope that the truth would come out.”
The case against Barnhouse is not technically over. Chief Deputy Prosecutor Eric Hoffman told the judge he and Prosecutor Jeffrey Arnold would make a decision in coming weeks on whether to bring Barnhouse to trial a second time.
For now, the case is set for trial on June 26.
Dowling also granted a motion that Barnhouse – who “currently suffers from certain mental health conditions,” the document said – in the meantime be released for treatment and evaluation at an Indianapolis mental health facility.
“You’ve got to do everything they say,” the judge told Barnhouse.
“Yes,” he responded.
Barnhouse – who most recently was incarcerated at the New Castle Correctional Facility – was brought to court in a jail uniform, but was later allowed to change into “civilian” clothes in a holding cell.
Dowling noted Barnhouse would routinely have to be returned to prison for processing before being released, but said she was making an exception in his case, allowing him to leave the Justice Center with his attorneys and family members.
“They’re going to have to live with my ruling,” the judge said.
Outside the building, Saifee was asked what her client’s plans were.
“He’s just hoping to get a good meal and enjoy the sun,” she said.
During the hearing, Saifee said prosecutors Hoffman and Arnold had worked with Innocence Project lawyers “every step of the way.”
That level of “genuine and swift cooperation” does not happen “as quickly as it should” in many cases, she said.
The victim identified him as her attacker after he was arrested nearby.
A witness at his trial said a single hair recovered from the victim could be linked to Barnhouse. The FBI has since said such findings are not reliable, Saifee said Wednesday.
Contact news reporter Douglas Walker at (765) 213-5851. Follow him on Twitter: @DouglasWalkerSP.