S03E08 - Henry McCollum & Leon Brown

American Justice Podcast

In episode eight season three of the American Justice Podcast, Scott and C. Derick break down the chilling rape and murder of Sabrina Bui, an 11-year-old girl found dead in a field - underwear stuffed down her throat, bloodied and raped in 1983. They discuss how two brothers, Henry McCollum and Leon Brown, were coerced into a confession, wrongfully convicted of murder, and sent to prison for more than 30 years for a crime that DNA evidence would later prove they didn't commit.

Time Stamps

01:40 The case of Sabrina Bui

03:00 Why Henry McCollum and Leon Brown Became the Prime Suspects in Sabrina's Murder

05:45 Sabrina Disappears and Her Parents File a Missing Person's Report

08:37 Sabrina's Body is Discovered Naked in a Soybean Field

11:07 Police Start Investigations Into the Murder of Sabrina Bui

14:05 Henry and Leon Get Interrogated For Hours Without a Lawyer

16:46 How Henry and Leon Were Coerced Into Signing False Confessions

22:25 Henry and Leon are Found Guilty and Recieve the Death Penalty

23:28 Leon Contacts the North Carolina Innocence Inquiry Commission

25:15 September 2014, a Judge Declares Leon and Henry Were Wrongfully Convicted

29:28 Leon's Struggles With Mental Health Issues

32:20 Henry and Leon Pursue Litigation Against Robeson County Law Enforcement

34:47 How Sabrina's Family Reacted to the News of Henry and Leon's Release

36:52 Roscoe Artis is Linked to Sabrina's Murder

38:06 Sabrina's Sister, Tenita, Shares Her Memory of the Day Her Sister Disappeared

40:15 Critical Information From the Case That Detectives Ignored

45:01 Roscoe's Troubling Criminal Past

47:20 How Roscoe Became a Suspect in Sabrina's Murder Case

50:34 District Attorney Joe Freeman's Reign of Terror

54:58 Joe Control Over the Courts in Robeson and Scotland Counties

58:30 Interesting Facts About Sabrina's Murder Case

01:07:20 The Main Causes Behind Wrongful Convictions in the US

01:08:17 Parting Thoughts

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You can reach the hosts here -

Scott Poggensee Email - [e-mail]

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C. Derick Miller www.cderickmiller.com

https://www.facebook.com/howlgrowlsnarl

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Links to research and videos

• https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/state-and-federal-info/state-by-state/north-carolina
• https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/stories/former-death-row-prisoners-freed-in-north-carolina
• https://www.ncdps.gov/our-organization/adult-correction/prisons/death-penalty/list-removed-death-row
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_executed_in_North_Carolina
• https://www.ncadp.org/pages/innocence
• https://www.fayobserver.com/story/news/crime/2014/09/04/sabrina-buie-s-family-stunned/22155787007/
• https://www.bartleby.com/essay/Sabrina-Buie-A-Girl-s-Father-P3CSAG3TU5ZW
• https://www.wunderground.com/history/daily/us/nc/fayetteville/KFAY/date/1983-9-24
• https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/joe-freeman-britt-prosecutor-who-sent-dozens-to-death-row-dies-at-80/2016/04/15/b246f27e-025b-11e6-b823-707c79ce3504_story.html
• https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2021/05/18/north-carolina-henry-mcollum-leon-brown-death-row-damages/5146225001/
• https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/17/us/north-carolina-brothers-death-row-settlement.html
• https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/05/16/north-carolina-brothers-exonerated-75million/
• https://www.themarshallproject.org/2018/04/07/the-price-of-innocence
• https://goodblacknews.org/tag/sabrina-buie/
• https://www.fayobserver.com/story/news/crime/2014/09/04/sabrina-buie-s-family-stunned/22155787007/
• https://nationalpost.com/news/free-at-last-dna-evidence-clears-brothers-of-rape-and-murder-of-north-carolina-girl-after-30-years-in-prison
• https://nccadp.org/stories/henry-mccollum-leon-brown/
• https://wcsj.law.duke.edu/2021/10/event-recap-henry-mccollum-leon-brown-attorneys-talk-wrongful-convictions/
• https://www.robesonian.com/archive/13240/news-breaking_news-home_top-news-50207657-motion-says-roscoe-artis-killed-buie
• https://abc11.com/child-rape-murder-red-springs-1983-killed/293662/
• https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/joe-freeman-britt-prosecutor-who-sent-dozens-to-death-row-dies-at-80/2016/04/15/b246f27e-025b-11e6-b823-707c79ce3504_story.html
• https://www.wral.com/robeson-da-weighing-charges-against-new-suspect-in-1983-murder/13947964/
• http://www.cdpl.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/SAVED-FROM-EXECUTION-web-final1.pdf
• https://www.legalscoops.com/6-most-common-causes-of-wrongful-convictions/

Videos

Short clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8L0IVy2mKa4

Sound bite: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyjIg_pKa3w

Sound bite: Death row interview with Henry McCollum