Man Framed by New Haven Police Wins $38M Verdict

​NEW HAVEN, CT — In a stinging rebuke of systemic law enforcement corruption, a federal jury has ordered the City of New Haven to pay $38 million to Stefon Morant, a man who spent more than 21 years in maximum-security prison for a 1990 double murder he consistently maintained he did not commit.

​The blockbuster verdict, delivered after 19 hours of intense deliberation, marks a monumental conclusion to Morant’s multi-year civil rights lawsuit. The ten-member jury determined that New Haven detectives flagrantly violated Morant’s constitutional rights by fabricating evidence, coercing vulnerable witnesses, and systematically burying exculpatory information that would have proven his innocence.

​A ‘Widespread Practice’ of Corruption

​Morant was convicted in 1994 and sentenced to 70 years for the fatal shootings of former New Haven Alderman Ricardo Turner and his partner, Lamont Fields. No physical or forensic evidence ever linked Morant to the crime scene. Instead, his civil rights lawsuit exposed a grim reality: investigators built their case entirely on threats, manufactured statements, and coached audio recordings.

​Crucially, the jury found the City of New Haven directly liable under a federal “pattern-and-practice” theory, concluding that the police department engaged in a “widespread practice” of suppressing evidence favorable to criminal defendants during the 1990s.

ADVERTISEMENT

​Former Detective Vincent Raucci was found liable on all counts, including malicious prosecution and civil rights conspiracy. The jury heard explosive evidence that Raucci deliberately framed Morant and a co-defendant to protect a notorious local drug kingpin. Another detective, Vaughn Maher, was also found jointly liable for his role in the conspiracy.

​Moving Forward From the Ruins

​Morant was released from prison in 2015 after a fellow detective came forward to expose the coercion, completely fracturing the state’s original case. He received a full and unconditional absolute pardon in 2021, wiping his record clean.

​Upon hearing the $38 million figure in the courtroom, Morant slammed his hand on the defense table and wept openly, embraced by his mother and his childhood sweetheart turned wife, Kimberly.

​”This means a lot, and hopefully I can get on with my life and move forward,” Morant said outside the courthouse. “Like my mother said, victory is mine.”

​While the financial award is among the largest of its kind in state history, Morant’s legal team emphasized that no sum can truly compensate for the stolen decades. Today, Morant channels his experience into progress, working directly as a mentor for the Connecticut Innocence Project to counsel returning citizens and assist other wrongfully convicted individuals.

​New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker stated that the city plans to appeal the ruling, specifically disputing the jury’s finding of systemic institutional misconduct. However, civil rights experts assert the verdict sends an unmistakable, multi-million-dollar warning to municipalities nationwide: the cost of hiding the truth will eventually come due.

​You can watch a detailed video report detailing the courtroom reactions and the historical context of the investigation by visiting the NBC Connecticut News Coverage on the $38M Verdict.