ELKHART, Ind. (AP) _ A northern Indiana woman is suing two police officers over the faulty fingerprint evidence that led to her spending eight years behind bars for the killing of a blind 94-year-old woman.
Lana Canen of Elkhart was released from prison in 2012 when a judge overturned her murder conviction after experts determined that an Elkhart County sheriff's detective had misidentified as hers a fingerprint found in the slain woman's apartment.
The lawsuit filed in federal court claims Canen suffered false imprisonment because detective Dennis Chapman wasn't qualified to identify fingerprints and misled prosecutors. The suit blames the other officer for vouching for Chapman
Chapman's attorney, Michael DeBoni, tells the South Bend Tribune his client didn't intentionally violate Canen's rights.
A co-defendant is serving a 55-year sentence for Helen Sailor's death.
