Brockton, Massachusetts – The city of Brockton has agreed to pay $3.75 million to Frances Choy, a woman who spent 17 years in prison for a deadly arson she did not commit. Choy was wrongfully convicted as a teenager, while investigators overlooked her troubled cousin, Kenneth Choy, as the actual perpetrator of the April 2003 fire that claimed the lives of Frances Choy’s parents, Jimmy and Anne Choy.
The settlement was confirmed by City Solicitor Megan Bridges during a city council committee meeting. Frances Choy’s attorney, John J. Barter, declined to comment on the case. According to Bridges, the state has also reached a settlement with Frances Choy, although the details are not yet known. In general, wrongful incarceration settlements typically amount to about $1 million per year of wrongful imprisonment.
Frances Choy’s release came after Plymouth County Superior Court judge Linda Giles vacated her criminal convictions in September 2020. Giles cited newly discovered evidence of racial bias by prosecutors, including racially and sexually offensive emails. The judge also pointed out expert evidence contradicting a State Police chemist’s findings and the failure of the Commonwealth to disclose evidence regarding Kenneth Choy’s motive and the alleged confession made by Frances Choy.
Brockton police also failed to record key interviews and an alleged confession from Frances Choy in April 2003. The judge highlighted the negligence of Joseph J. Krowski, Frances Choy’s trial attorney, for failing to investigate a witness who claimed that Kenneth Choy had admitted to starting the fire.
The settlement payment will consist of two installments. The first payment of $1.25 million is due on Saturday, March 30th, with $1.2 million being transferred from the city’s “overlay surplus” account for legal settlements and property tax abatements. An additional $50,000 will come from police department salaries. City Councilor Susan Nicastro expressed concern about the remaining balance in the account, but the city’s chief financial officer, Troy Clarkson, assured her that it exceeds the 5-year average and should be sufficient.
This is not the first time Brockton has had to make a significant payment for a settlement. In a Department of Public Works hiring discrimination case brought by Russell Lopes, the city had to find $4.7 million to settle, with an additional $2.05 million paid to resolve a related class-action suit involving 69 qualified, non-white applicants to the DPW.
The wrongful incarceration of Frances Choy highlights the need for a fair and unbiased criminal justice system. While the financial settlement provides some measure of compensation, it cannot undo the years of lost freedom and the emotional toll endured by Choy and her family.