At that time, Chapman conducted a “level-one basic comparison” on key similarities between a latent print (one retrieved from the crime scene) and fingerprints taken from Canen when she was initially taken into custody.  Despite his lack of proper training in conducting latent print comparisons and despite his lack of qualifications, Chapman testified that the fingerprint recovered from the plastic pill container in Sailor’s home matched Canen’s finger.  

 

Canen was convicted and sentenced to 55 years in prison, with the fingerprint being the only evidence against her. After Canen’s conviction, attorney Cara Wieneke took on the case, seeking to prove Canen’s innocence. Wieneke hired an independent expert to conduct an analysis of the fingerprint.  The expert told Wieneke that based on her analysis, Canen was actually excluded.

 

According to Wieneke, the prosecutor refused a request to have the state crime lab re-analyze the print.  Canen was then granted an evidentiary hearing and her expert prepared a report on her finding which was turned over to the prosecutor and reviewed by Detective Chapman. According to Elkhart County Sheriff Brad Rogers, Detective Chapman saw that evidence depicted a higher level of analysis of the print, the sheriff said, and Chapman was convinced that he had actually made an error.

 

Chapman reported his error to his supervisor, and Rogers ordered an internal investigation. At the evidentiary hearing, Detective Chapman admitted that he made a misidentification within Canen’s trial and that he overstated his fingerprint examination experience to jurors at the time of the trial. He testified that his current opinion is based on additional training he had received since Canen’s trial.  The prosecution, which previously had objected to Wieneke’s request that the Indiana State Police Crime Lab examine the evidence, decided to send the evidence to the lab. Analysts at the lab confirmed the latent fingerprint was not Canen’s.

 

Wieneke filed a motion for Canen’s immediate release from prison and the prosecution offered to negotiate a plea agreement for time served. On September 28, 2012, after Canen refused to negotiate, the Elkhart County District Attorney’s Office joined in the motion for Canen’s release. On November 2, 2012, the conviction was vacated, and the charge was dismissed and Canen was released from prison.

 

For more details on the case of Lana Canen, please see her profile on the National Registry of Exonerations.