Wynn Hopes for New Trial After 2008 Witness Recants in Cleveland Court
The prosecution's primary witness stated she misidentified the shooter due to pressure, prompting Judge Saffold to review evidence for a potential retrial.
By Rafael Bailey ·
Clifshell Stevenson, the prosecution's lead witness in a 2008 Cleveland homicide case, recanted her testimony during an evidentiary hearing on Tuesday in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court. Stevenson, now 30, told Judge Jeffrey Saffold that her trial identification of Roberto Wynn as the shooter was not truthful. She stated that she did not see Wynn fire a gun but rather observed him running for cover. Stevenson said she felt guilty for years and described the experience as a spiritual attack since the incident began.
Wynn was convicted of the fatal drive-by shooting of Christopher Basie on Parmelee Avenue. Stevenson was 13 years old when she first testified. She claimed that Cleveland police and a family member pressured her to name Wynn. In a letter signed in 2022, she wrote that she blamed Wynn for a crime he did not commit and was certain he did not have a gun. She noted that she was angry at the time and did not realize his life would be spent in prison because of her statements.
The case has been stuck in the court system for years. The Ohio Innocence Project filed a motion in 2024 requesting a hearing to present new evidence. That request sat on Judge Saffold's docket for more than two years. A News 5 investigation aired in July, revealing that Wynn had been waiting over two years for a ruling on his motion. Following that broadcast, Judge Saffold granted Wynn's attorney permission to file a motion for a new trial after an attorney conference held the same day the report aired.
During a phone interview from prison, Wynn told News 5 Investigator Sarah Buduson that he was anxious and nervous about the hearing. He stated that his life was in the balance and that he wanted his freedom back. His father, Ronnie Wynn, said the family has been locked up alongside him. His mother, Carla Butler, said she views the development as an answer to her prayers.
Cuyahoga County prosecutors argued that Stevenson is not a credible witness. They noted that three other witnesses with similar accounts also identified Wynn as the shooter. Judge Saffold said he will review all available evidence to decide if Wynn should receive a new trial.
Michael Donnelly, a former Cuyahoga County Common Pleas judge and current adjunct law professor at Cleveland State University, said delays in innocence cases are systemic. He noted that safeguards like the right to a speedy trial do not apply in post-conviction proceedings. Since 2014, News 5 Investigators found 28 cases in Cuyahoga County where motions for a new trial remained open for more than 120 days, the standard set by the Ohio Supreme Court.
Donnelly, who created Ohio Court Watch, said the organization recently launched a website to track cases involving innocence claims. He stated that a proposed state law, H.B. 177, would require judges to hold hearings when credible new evidence emerges. The bill was introduced in March 2025 and assigned to the Ohio House Judiciary Committee but has not yet received a hearing. Donnelly said attorneys can complain to higher courts about delays, but most do not because they fear angering the judge who holds the ruling.
Wynn remains in custody while Judge Saffold reviews the file. The next step in the legal process is the judge's decision on whether to grant the motion for a new trial.
