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Former investigator settles for $750K in wrongful accusation case

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Published  September 16, 2024 11:39pm EDT
Georgia
FOX 5 Atlanta

Woman settles for $750K in wrongful arrest

Lily Engleman sued the Georgia Department of Corrections after she was falsely accused of delivering contraband to an inmate facing the death penalty.

In brief:

    • Former defense team investigator Lily Engleman settled for $750,000 with the state after being wrongfully accused of smuggling contraband to a death-row inmate.
    • The false accusations against Engleman led to her arrest and job loss, significantly impacting her life and career, with a judge eventually dismissing the charges.
    • Engleman was working for the Georgia Public Defender's Council at the time of the accusation and felt targeted because of her role in the defense team.
    • After losing her job due to the felony indictment and struggling financially, Engleman now works as a mitigation specialist with the Federal Defender Program.
    • Although the Department of Corrections denies involvement, the state has reached a settlement in Engleman's favor, which she believes will affect her future career prospects.

ATLANTA - A former defense team investigator reached a $750,000 deal with the state. Lily Engleman sued the Georgia Department of Corrections after she was falsely accused of delivering contraband to an inmate facing the death penalty. Engleman dropped her suit Friday as part of that deal. 

Engleman was arrested, lost her job, and couldn’t find work in the field for several years. A judge eventually tossed the charges against her. Even still, Engleman says the false accusation at least temporarily derailed her life. 

Engleman felt blindsided. "I had no idea this was going to be happening to me," Engleman said. "I will always still feel a little bit angry that this happened." 

Engleman, back in 2019, was an investigator with the Capital Defender’s office, a division of the Georgia Public Defenders Council. She had gone to see a client at the Georgia Diagnostic Prison in Jackson. "I would have to go visit him very regularly at the facility he was house at," Engleman said. 

However, on one visit she found herself on the other side of the criminal justice system. "I was arrested when leaving the visit. I was accused of giving contraband to my client." 

An investigator with the Department of Corrections accused Engleman of delivering two small, unknown items to her then-client Ricky DuBose, who was facing the death penalty for killing two corrections officers. "I knew I hadn’t given anything to my client. I felt like I was being targeted for being a member of his defense team," Engleman said. 

DuBose eventually took his own life. Engleman lost her job. "I was under a felony indictment, no one wanted to hire me," Engleman said. "Really struggled financially." 

Engleman says she was falsely accused. A judge in 2021 threw out the charges against her. "I do feel vindicated," she said. 

Engleman initially sued the Department of Corrections. She dropped the suit on Friday after reaching an agreement with the state. "We settled for $750,000," she said. 

Engleman is now a mitigation specialist with the Federal Defender Program in Atlanta. She tells FOX 5 the five years she spent fighting to clear her name have taken a huge toll. "It’s a story I’m always to have to explain to potential employers in the future. It is something that is going to follow me," she said. 

A spokesperson for the Department of Corrections says it had nothing to do with the settlement. FOX 5 repeatedly called the state Attorney General’s Office and is awaiting a response.