ndrew Gossett originally became a suspect in the abduction and sexual assault of a Garland woman after a patrol officer saw him in the vicinity of the crime scene and thought he looked suspicious. Gossett was arrested and his photo was placed in a photo lineup. The victim identified Gossett from the photo lineup so quickly that the officers were taken aback by her haste. Yet her confidence that he was her attacker ultimately assured police. At trial, the testimony of the victim was significantly inconsistent with earlier statements made to police.
Gossett’s alibi placed him at his girlfriend’s apartment the entire night, except for two brief trips to a convenience store. A surveillance video at the store showed a customer resembling Gossett making a purchase around the time of the assault. In addition, Gossett passed a polygraph test and hair samples taken from the victim’s car were dissimilar to those of Gossett. However, Gossett was convicted of aggravated sexual assault and sentenced to fifty years in prison. Post-conviction DNA testing proved Gossett’s innocence and he was released on January 4, 2007.
Because of a mistaken eyewitness identification, Gossett spent over seven years in prison for a crime he did not commit.
