Valentino Dixon was wrongfully convicted of murder and spent 27 years in prison before his conviction was overturned in 2018.
Valentino Dixon’s case is a profound example of a miscarriage of justice. In 1991, Dixon was convicted of a shooting at a Buffalo, New York, golf course that left one man dead and another injured. Despite the lack of physical evidence linking him to the crime and the testimony of numerous witnesses who claimed another man, Lamarr Scott, was the shooter, Dixon was found guilty and sentenced to 38 years to life in prison.
While in prison, Dixon began drawing detailed golf course landscapes, a hobby that eventually gained him attention from the media and golf enthusiasts. His artwork was featured in Golf Digest, which helped bring widespread attention to his case. Advocates and students from Georgetown University’s Prisons and Justice Initiative began to work on his behalf, re-examining the evidence and pushing for his case to be reviewed.
In 2018, after a re-investigation of the case, Erie County District Attorney’s Office concluded that Dixon had been wrongfully convicted. Lamarr Scott, who had confessed to the shooting multiple times over the years, officially admitted to the crime in court. On September 19, 2018, Valentino Dixon was exonerated and released from prison after 27 years behind bars. Since his release, Dixon has continued his art and has become an advocate for criminal justice reform, working to highlight the issues within the legal system that lead to wrongful convictions.