HCAO Press Conference: Charges Dismissed Against Edgar Barrientos-Quintana (11/12/24)

Hennepin County Attorney dismisses charges against Edgar Barrientos-Quintana
The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office dismissed charges against a man wrongfully charged and convicted of murder in 2009, after the court vacated his convictions last week. After serving 16 years in prison for a crime he did not commit, Mr. Barrientos-Quintana walked out of prison a free man.
In 2009, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office charged Mr. Barrientos-Quintana with a murder and an attempted murder that occurred in a drive-by shooting. More than a decade after Mr. Barrientos-Quintana was sentenced to life without parole, a subsequent investigation revealed serious defects in the case that showed that he was actually innocent of the charges. For this reason, in a 180-page report, the Attorney General’s Conviction Review Unit office concluded Mr. Barrientos-Quintana's convictions could not stand. Our office, having reviewed the evidence, agreed. And now, so does the court.
In a 103-page order vacating the convictions, the court concluded that Barrientos-Quintana did not receive a fair trial due to his attorneys’ failure to effectively represent him and prosecutors’ failure to disclose favorable evidence. The court also found that investigators used suggestive lineup procedures and coercive interrogation tactics, both of which resulted in unreliable eyewitness identifications. In granting Mr. Barrientos-Quintana relief, the court concluded that the “State’s case was weak.” The court further stated that it “simply cannot express any confidence that, if Mr. Barrientos-Quintana had reasonable counsel, or if the prosecutors had complied with their duty to disclose, the jury would still have convicted him.”
After receiving the court’s order, the HCAO promptly dismissed the charges. Within hours, Mr. Barrientos-Quintana was released from prison.
“We are thankful that the judge has agreed to vacate Mr. Barrientos-Quintana's conviction, who spent 16 years in prison for a crime he did not commit,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said.
“Nothing can give Mr. Barrientos-Quintana back those sixteen years, and for that, we are so sorry. Our hearts are also with the family of Jesse Mickelson over their irreparable loss. When the criminal legal system does not function ethically, it causes significant harm.
“Since January 2023, we have taken important steps to guard against this ever happening again. In my first year in office, I prioritized the creation of a Division of Professional Standards, a new team focused on ensuring we meet our ethical and legal requirements. We’ve hired a national expert in eyewitness identification to conduct a series of trainings for our staff to help ensure this never happens again.
“We also established a Conviction Integrity Unit to investigate criminal convictions within Hennepin County where there is a plausible claim that an innocent person was convicted, or some other serious miscarriage of justice occurred.”
Mr. Mickelson’s four sisters and one of the jurors publicly supported the decision to dismiss charges, saying they now believe Mr. Barrientos-Quintana is innocent.