When She Was Just 17-Years-Old, She Was Sentenced To Life Behind Bars For A Crime She Claims She Never Committed, Ruining Her Dreams Of Being A Professional Basketball Player
In 2010, India Spellman of Philadelphia was known by her community as a star high school basketball player.
The seventeen-year-old was nearing graduation and planned to attend college. Then, India aspired to play basketball for the WNBA.
So, when she was found guilty of second-degree murder, robbery, and other related charges on February 20, 2013, the community could not believe it.
Moreover, India claims that she should never have been convicted in the first place.
She has since spent over a decade in SCI Cambridge Springs, only part of her life sentence behind bars. And now, India is speaking out about her conviction– alleging it was wrongful and a product of coercion, police misconduct, and fabricated testimony.
“I know that everyone claims that they are innocent, but I am truly innocent, and the facts of this case will prove that legally and factually I am innocent,” India said.
According to the now twenty-nine-year-old, her nightmare began on August 18, 2010. That night, she claims to have been at home with her father and grandfather, scrolling on Facebook and talking on her cell phone.
At the same time, a robbery was taking place in her community– one that India alleges she had no involvement in and that led to the death of a victim.
freeindiaspellman.org; pictured above is India
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Then, two days later, India picked up her paycheck from Dunkin Donuts– where she worked– and traveled home afterward. Once home, she began to get ready to go to the mall.
India never made it out the front door, though. Instead, her grandfather called her downstairs, and as soon as she walked into the living room, there were multiple police officers and detectives.
The authorities reportedly asked India to have a seat and inquired if she knew why they were there. India said she had no clue, and then the officers told her grandfather they were bringing her into the police station for questioning.
“No one ever told me that I was under arrest. I just thought that I was going to the police station to answer some questions. Little did I know that they would be taking me to the Homicide Department,” India recalled.
And as soon as she got there, India claims she went through hell. She allegedly sat in the interrogation room for hours– crying and trying to understand what was going on.
Then, a detective finally went inside and repeatedly asked if India knew why she was at the station. After saying no, though, the officer reportedly did not stop. Instead, he kept calling India a liar.
“I was repeatedly told that I was a liar and that I knew what I was there for. The more he hollered at me, the more I cried and asked for my parents. I was told that my parents had left and gone home,” she explained.
Eventually, the first detective left the room and another– named Detective Pitts– went inside to interrogate India. But, she claims that Detective Pitts’ demeanor was even more frightening.
“Detective Pitts was extremely hostile and abusive. I was hit in the mouth, and he called me a liar. He said that I robbed and killed a man,” India detailed.
“By that time, I was hysterical and terrified. I was being accused of robbery and, even worse, murder. All I wanted was for my parents to come to get me and take me home.”
Unfortunately, though, that never happened. And now that India has spent much of her young adult life behind bars already, she has been forced to lean on her community in hopes of being freed.
India created a Change.org petition earlier this year urging Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner to exonerate her. And within her plea for community members’ support, India detailed numerous key reasons why she is innocent.
First, India allegedly has alibi witnesses and proof she was at home using the telephone and computer at the time of the crimes she was accused of.
Next, India says she does not fit the description of the female perpetrator who eyewitnesses or the victims described and that she was denied access to her parents as a minor while in police custody and interrogation.
Finally, she claims she was forced to submit a false confession, was subjected to psychological and physical abuse during interrogation, and that evidence was hidden during her trial.
“The lead detective that interviewed India and secured her false confession has also since been arrested for perjury and obstructing justice,” the petition added.
“India’s dreams were snatched away and shattered in the blink of an eye. She was never given a fair chance to prove her innocence. All she wants is for the facts to be reviewed and justice on the merits of the facts.”
The petition has since gained over two hundred and seventy-eight thousand signatures from people across the country– a number that is increasing by the hour.
If you would like to learn more about India’s case, you can visit her website linked here. Or, to sign her Change.org petition, visit the link here.
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