Judge Overturns 40-Year Murder Conviction, Impacting Immigration Case
A Pennsylvania judge has overturned a decades-old murder conviction, setting the stage for the potential release of Subramanyam Vedam, an Indian national currently in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Vedam has spent 40 years behind bars for a crime he has consistently denied committing.
Challenging a Conviction from 1980
The ruling came shortly after a four-hour hearing, during which Vedam reiterated his innocence concerning the 1980 shooting of Thomas Kinser. Participating remotely from the Moshannon Valley Processing Center in Phillipsburg, Pennsylvania, Vedam expressed remorse for his youthful indiscretions, stating, “At that time I was young and stupid and did a lot of stupid things.” The government is now pursuing his deportation to India, a country he left as a baby in 1962.
Judge Acknowledges Rehabilitation Efforts
U.S. Immigration Judge Adam Panopoulos remarked that Vedam has demonstrated significant personal growth and does not pose a threat to society. His assessment highlighted Vedam’s commitment to improving literacy among fellow prisoners and fostering relationships with family members, including nieces who have never known him outside prison walls.
Immigration Complications Persist
Despite the successful overturning of his murder conviction, Vedam faces immigration challenges. Lawyers from the Department of Homeland Security cited a separate drug distribution conviction that could still result in his deportation. “The vacating of one conviction does not stop ICE from enforcing federal immigration law,” the department stated in an email.
Aiming for a Fresh Start
Vedam, commonly known as Subu, was born in Mumbai and brought to the U.S. at nine months old. He grew up in State College, Pennsylvania, where his father taught physics. Now 64, Vedam is a lawful permanent resident who was nearing U.S. citizenship at the time of his initial arrest. His attorney, Eva Benac, has indicated intentions to seek bail for Vedam, who wishes to reunite with relatives in Sacramento, California, and pursue a doctoral program in applied anthropology at Oregon State University.
Legal Developments and Unresolved Charges
Last year, State University prosecutors opted not to retry Vedam after a Center County judge determined that key ballistic evidence had been withheld during his original trials. Vedam’s release was imminent in October when ICE intervened, seeking to deport him. A strong proponent for his release, Vedam maintained that he had consistently rejected plea bargains offered during his trials, insisting on his innocence.
Details of the Case Emerge
In the narrative surrounding Kinser’s disappearance, both men were high school friends aged 19 when Kinser went missing. His body was discovered several months later, having been shot in the head, with no weapon recovered. Although Vedam was criminally linked to Kinser through the purchase of a .25-caliber gun, jurors were unaware of an FBI report suggesting that the head wound was incompatible with that caliber, raising questions about the integrity of the evidence presented at trial.
Potential Barriers to Continued Stay
While acquitted of murder, Vedam now faces the threat of deportation due to other criminal charges, including drug-related offenses. During recent hearings, attorneys from Homeland Security stressed Vedam’s previous arrests for driving under the influence and theft, asserting that these crimes jeopardize his eligibility to remain in the U.S. They posed the argument that Vedam had typically sold drugs only to undercover officers, a point that has drawn scrutiny about his involvement in drug trafficking.
