In two thousand and five, Paul Cortes was pursuing his theatrical and musical career in New York City while intermittently dating twenty one year old Katherine Woods, an aspiring dancer from Columbus, Ohio. Catherine also allowed her ex boyfriend David Hahn, who struggled financially and with drug addiction, to stay in her Manhattan apartment until he got back on his feet.
On November twenty seventh, two thousand and five, Catherine was brutally stabbed to death in her apartment, with police and ear witnesses placing the time of the crime between six twenty and six twenty five pm. Hawn called nine one one at six point fifty pm and named Paul Cortes
as the murderer when the police arrived. When police found one of Paul's fingerprints that they mistakenly believed was impressed in blood rather than an old print that had been covered by blood, Paul became the prime suspect, even though surveillance footage in front of Catherine's building only placed David Haun at the seat. Paul was arrested and charged with
her murder. With Paul's defense failing to question this fingerprint or present key exculpatory evidence, including the surveillance footage as well as the attacker's DNA from the victim's fingernails and hands. Paul was convicted and sentenced to twenty five to life. Well, now check in with Paul and his attorney Tony Marie Angeli to see where his case stands. This is wrongful Conviction. Welcome back to Wrongful Conviction. Today's case is going to
blow your mind. You know, I thought I had seen everything until I heard about the case of Paul Cortes. This case it has racism, it has incompetence on official levels, it has junk science, but it also has attorneys representing the defendant who themselves were committing numerous crimes before, during, and probably after the trial. So yeah, sorry, I'm a little worked up today, but you will be too by
the time you finished hearing this episode. This is Wrongful Conviction Behind bars, where today's guest is, of course, Paul Cortes. And Paul. I'm really sorry you're here because of the circumstances, but I'm really happy to have you on the air.
Thank you, Jason. I'm just very grateful for you to have me on the show and to be able to finally get my story out.
There and with us today is Tony Marie Angelie of the Angelie Law Firm. I hope you're never in trouble, but if you are, you should track her down because she's a pitbull, and I mean, then the best way, Tony Marie. I'm glad you're here, thank.
You, and I am so happy to be here.
So, Paul, you came from a poor neighborhood in the Bronx, right, What was your childhood like?
Well, I was just like any normal kid in the Bronx, coming from a Puerto Rican family. My mom raised us three kids. My father left when I was younger, and my mom remarried later on. My mom always pushed academics and doing well in school, so I think it was around twelve I had tested into private schools and I started going to private schools Manhattan for junior high and then high school. During that time, I was into sports, I was in the theater, I was in the arts.
I auditioned all of these colleges and I eventually got into Boston University and I earned my bachelor's in fine arts. I was the first in my family to go to college and to graduate. I was in two thousand and three when I graduated, and after that, I came back to New York to pursue a life in the arts, and I was very hopeful at that time for accomplishing my dream.
So now you're auditioning for rent, making your way in the city that never sleeps, coming from a background that normally most people don't managed to make it to anything like their dreams. So what was happening back then? Take us back to two thousand and three.
I had signed with the talent agency and I was very excited about that. I went on several auditions and I was also doing music on the side as well. It was really fun. I was living life to the fullest at that time.
Now here we go to December two thousand and five. You are working as a physical trainer and a yoga instructor, doing your auditions, completing your solo musical album. And the person at the center of this was your on again, off again girlfriend. And that woman who was the victim in this case is a woman named Katherine Woods.
Yeah, Katherine was twenty one at a time, and she was a really special person and I really cared for her, and she had a great relationship. And like any relationships, there are ups and downs, but I always cared for her.
So she was taking voice and dance lessons, working part time jobs at a hair salon, was seeing several different men, that's her choice, you know, No judgment here, and she worked as a stripper at night under the alias of Ava. She had told her parents and friends that she was dancing in an off Broadway show as a character named Ava. So I mean, again, no judgment here, but it does
present a complex picture of a person. Then, as fate would have it, when she was visiting her family in Columbus, Ohio, she met a troubled guy named David Hahn. Now David was a guy who had grown up in foster homes in Columbus and dropped out of high school. At the time he met Catherine, he was unemployed and attempting to make it as a rapper, and not too long after they met he moved to New York to live with her. He struggled financially and bounced around, couldn't hold the job,
and she paid most of his bills. But weeks before the murder, Catherine had asked David to move out, but he struggled with drug so she had recently allowed him to move back in and sleep on the couch. Now can you sort of fill in the blanks here, Paul, Well.
She was definitely trying to get him out of the apartment, and several times where she had asked him to and was successful, he would call her depressed and threatening to kill himself. And it was kind of a vo little situation. She always said that he's like family and that she really cares about him. She kept a lot of it to herself. She was very private in that sense.
And then in April two thousand and five, Catherine was drugged at one of the strip clubs that she worked at. What a nightmare, Paul. Can you tell us what happened with that.
She called me at the club and she asked for help, and I hurried down. She was really messed up. She could hardly walk, and she didn't want to go back to her apartment, so I just brought her to a hotel and set her up there and got her to go to the hospital because she was worried that she might have gotten raped at that time, so being concerned about it all I went back and called her parents.
I thought maybe her parents could talk to her and help her out, But she got upset at me because that night life was something that she didn't discuss with her family.
And while I think that any reasonable person who cared about somebody as you did might do the same thing if they were in your shoes, this caused a real rift between you two, and when questioned by her father about what you had told him, Catherine said that you were crazy, that she was not working as a strip or involved in anything dangerous. Her dad believed her, and she then broke up with you, although several weeks later you both reconciled and got back together. So sometime after this,
you went to Catherine Tobn happened to meet David. Now the two of you only met this one time, but David had been unaware of your and Catherin's relationship, and when he found out, he became very upset, feeling misled. And so this now brings us to November twenty seven, two thousand and five, when miss Wood was found stabbed
to death in her Upper East Side apartment. According to police reports and ear witness testimony, the attack happened in two parts, first around six pm and then finally around six twenty three pm with four count of four witnesses
hearing Catherine screaming and crying. Now, David had initially told police that he left the apartment twenty minutes before he called nine one one at six fifty pm that evening, which would have placed him within the apartment during that exact timeframe described by the witnesses, and when police arrived on the scene, David immediately named Paul as the killer,
holding up a CD of Paul's music. I mean, it's unreal, Okay, So, Tony Marie, tell us about the investigation and what was it that shifted the focus to Paul and away from David, who would have seemed like the obvious suspect.
Well, initially law enforcement had identified David Hahn as the perpetrator.
Everything that he.
Said at the time, Looking back now with twenty twenty hindsight, it was deceptive, it was inaccurate, and it showed that he was a perpetrator. But what happened was law enforcement found this bloody fingerprint which they called it, which it actually isn't in the apartment, and the focus switched to Paul.
Right, and this fingerprint plays such an important role throughout this whole story. So investigators found this fingerprint, but it didn't match David Haunt, and Paul becomes the prime suspect. But this fingerprint is actually a latent fingerprint and not a patent fingerprint, which is what it was incorrectly believed to be. Can you break this down for us real quick.
Well, anytime we touch a surface, we can leave a fingerprint, and that could be from our sweat or if something was on our hands, So you would leave a print and it would not be made from another substance that went on top of So if you leave a print and then a substance goes on top, that's latent.
And if the print is made of the substance.
Like they argued at trial, they argued that the fingerprint was peyton made of blood, which it is not.
It was latent, preexisting exactly.
So the fingerprints already there and then the blood ends up on top of it. And this makes sense that Paul's fingerprints were there, as he and Catherine had been in a relationship and he'd been to her home many many times. So was there any other evidence at all that pointed to Paul.
The case against Paul was really founded on two or three pieces of evidence, so they had their team in there for days documenting this very bloody crime scene. It was a big fight in there, and that led to
this fingerprint that was on the wall. The other piece of evidence was cell phone records, Paul's cell phone records, Catherine's cell phone records, and David Han's cell phone records, and the prosecute and the police built a theory that Paul was texting and leaving these messages, was this jilted lover, and that she was rejecting him. He was full of rage and killed this girl. It's not actually supported by any of the evidence, but that was their theory.
Here's where things started spinning out of control in my opinion, which is that immediately after the murder, the police leaked erroneous information, a false information called what You went to the media relating to the investigation, and they ate it up.
TV news and newspapers were filled with stories with this false narrative of a scary, alleged Puerto Rican predator from the Bronx taking the life of this sweet, innocent girl from the Midwest, and so the media made it about race, and one of the stories even cited anonymous police sources with reports of an alleged confession letter alleged existence of a surveillance video showing Paul leaving the crime scene, which,
of course all of it was totally false. In fact, fact, the exact opposite was true.
There was a video that proves my innocence, a video that shows their original suspect leaving the crime scene thirteen minutes after the commission of the crime. And I'm nowhere on this video at all, and I'm nowhere on any videos.
And the cops and the DA's office, they were leaking information to the media saying, oh, he was on camera around the time of the crime and all of this, But they had the video that showed their original suspect entering into this scene and coming out thirteen minutes after the crime. It's just horrendous.
This episode is underwritten by AIG, a leading global insurance company. AIG is committed to corporate social responsibility and is making a positive difference in the lives of its employees and in the communities where we work and live. In light of the compelling need for pro bono legal assistance and in recognition of AIG's commitment to criminal and social justice reform. The AIG pro Bono program provides free legal services and
other support to underrepresented communities and individuals. While Paul awaited trial at Riker's Island, his family pulled together their life savings to retain Dawn Florio and her colleague Laura Miranda to represent Paul at trial. Now, unfortunately, that's not even a strong enough word. Unbeknownst to Paul and his family, Florio, while she was representing Paul, she was simultaneously under indictment by the same prosecutor's office for smuggling drugs into a
client at Rikers Island. The case against Florio received repeated adjournments and the court bile remained sealed to this day. But all of this came to light as the trial was starting and the trial judge, Judge Berkman, did not do a proper conflict inquiry which is called Gomberg inquiry, basically telling Paul that they didn't see how it would be a problem and inferred he would have to go to trial without counsel if he pursued the matter further
unreal so he would have had to represent himself. I mean it's nuts. Okay, So, Paul, you'd been waiting for eighteen months at Riker's Island, a notoriously dangerous, chaotic, and scary place, and this is how your trial was starting. I mean, what was that like?
Yeah, I basically my lawyers didn't show up for the first three days of trial, and it was just a mess from the beginning. They seemed ill prepared.
Well, I think some people in our audience may well say themselves, Wait a minute, I thought I heard him say that his attorneys didn't show up for the first three days of trial. But that can't be true.
Yeah, you're right, they didn't show up. I didn't know where they were.
And it's so bad that one of your attorneys was held to contempt of court and actually find one thousand dollars for not showing up. And when they they did show up, they didn't even pretend to make an effort to represent you. So, Tony, Marie, the two defense attorneys, Florio and Miranda, can you talk about the myriad errors that they made during the trial.
Well, they didn't hire any experts, and they didn't develop any of this evidence. They didn't go to the scene, they didn't speak to the witnesses. The one thing they did do was they contacted a fingerprint expert. I spoke to that expert. I got an affid David from him. What is chilling is that expert actually told the defense that there was a problem with the fingerprint, it looked like it was latent, and they should have the sheet
rock examined and test the medium. So the one direction they got they were actually given information as to how to disprove this by an expert. They didn't call the expert. They didn't do it.
And we haven't even touched on one of the biggest things here, which is the surveillance video that Paul mentioned earlier, and this is it just blows my mind. On the video, you can clearly see David Hahn leaving the apartment at six point thirty seven, and there's the time stamp right on the video, and that's just thirteen fourteen minutes after
this brutal murder took place at six twenty three. But the defense attorneys didn't show this to the jury because it turns out that while they had the video, they didn't know this was there because they hadn't even bothered to watch the whole video.
The defense didn't bring it to light, and the prosecutor went forward and argued and presented evidence that we now know affirmatively was untrue, and we now know affirmatively he knew at the time. So it is a profound injustice and failing of all the pieces of our system that we rely on.
Okay, So the state presented mostly circumstance evidence, like the high volume of calls you mentioned, and the only physical evidence presented was the latent fingerprint, which we've talked about. But the state also presented what they described as evidence but can only really be described as somewhere between ridiculous and ludicrous. I'm talking about Paul's diary entries dating back to when he was ten years old. What world do we live in when this is allowed to be admitted.
They also submitted lyrics to a song that Paul co wrote with his fellow band member, and a childhood comic drawing of a teenage mutant Ninja Turtle holding a sword. Wow, I mean, this is as bad as the West Memphis three in that sense, And this was brought into the trial as supposed proof that he was a violent guy, even though Paul had no history whatsoever. A violence or
any run ins at all with the law. Here's the thing, obviously, whoever was involved in this violent struggle for Catherine's life which she ripped out the hair of her attacker and clawed him as well, one would say, well, Paul must have been covered in scratches or at least had blood on him, or you know, maybe even a significant amount of blood. But he didn't.
First of all, that testimony came out at trial by the forensic experts called by the police that the person would be covered in blood. What didn't come out at trial was the cleanup that took place. There was crystal violet all in the tub, so the perpetrator not only was covered in blood, but cleaned up in that apartment
before they left. We know from the video footage that his Internet timestamped proven to be accurate, that David Hahn walked out of that apartment thirteen minutes after the homicide occurred.
What the prosecutor did, which was just incredibly inappropriate in my opinion and rises to the level of the misconduct, is then argue to the jury inclosing knowingly untrue assertions that David Hahn left the apartment at six o'clock before the homicide occurred, leaving this window of forty minutes for Paul Cortes to have gone in and committed a homicide that he didn't commit.
That's how this conviction happened.
So, Tony Marie, if you had been able to represent Paul at the original trial, and I know you probably wish you could go back in time and do that, how would things have gone differently?
I think if you play the video and watch it and see someone else leaving the scene after the homicide, that is key, and you show that to the jury, that would have changed the day. The forensic evidence, for instance, there were hairs found in Catherine's hand, hairs with the roots attached. The only tests that were done on those hairs were by the prosecution comparing it to Paul.
He's excluded. Why not test those hairs?
Why not go forward with that type of investigation. It's a homicide, Go to the scene, speak to the witnesses. The failings are just monumental.
I did never expected that I would be convicted. I just believe that the truth would prevail, and that's why I took the stand and I tried to be as forthcoming as I could understand. I completely expected that they would have quit me because they would know that what I was saying was the truth.
So here we have it. No evidence presented by the defense, phony evidence presented by the prosecutors, and the results are a foregone conclusion. And now the worst moment comes. You get convicted, right then you get taken away. So tell us about that, I mean from Rikers, I guess it couldn't get worse, could it.
It did, and at a certain points throughout this incarceration it has. When I heard the guilty verdict, it was just a complete shock to me. I hadn't expected this life that I've been living for the past sixteen years as an innocent man in prison, and all the terrible things I've witnessed throughout these sixteen years, all the tragedies. It was definitely the hardest time of my life. I went to my first prison, which was all burned correctional facility,
which is a disciplinary jail. It's probably one of the most violent prisons at the time, multiple stabbings every day, people meeting each other off gang violence. So I'm just trying to stay safe, trying to write the case during that time. I mean with everything that's gone on. There are definitely waves even today of me just being so crazy mad at everything about life, about how unfair everything is.
But you know, that just makes a person bitter, and we just have to continue in the best way we can to be good people and help people in the situations that we're in. And that's what I've been trying
to do. I've always saw this as a test, and if I can pass this test, and if I can come out of this as a better person, not just someone who survived this, but someone who's overcome and zone who has contributed throughout this ordeal to try to help others who have been even less fortunate than I. I guess I hold on to the fact that there are people like Tony Marie, people like yourself, people like my family and my friends who know that I am innocent and
they believe in my innocence and they haven't and they don't give up on me. And knowing that has been something that has really given me hope throughout all of this, and it has made me the person that I am.
Tony Marie, how did this case first land on your desk and what was it about this that made you decide to devote yourself pro bono, by the way, for years to this man, Paul Cortes.
Well, I was contacted by some of Paul's ardent supporters in the fall of twenty fifteen, and I ordered the file.
And when I opened it up in.
January of two sixteenth, I did what any thinking lawyer might do. I put the video in. And when I put the video in and I saw David Hahn leaving after that homicide had occurred, I couldn't but get involved.
Upon seeing that, I worked up the case. I contacted, you know, eleven different experts on crime scenes and the cell phone records, the cell site records which show where Paul is, which is actually not at the apartment, went through every slip of paper in this case, and what came over and over and over again was more and more and more information showing how innocent he is. And honestly, it was all there all along. It was in the file.
So these lawyers bad enough not showing up, but then not introducing the evidence that was in their files and then claiming later on that they didn't even know that it was there. The real consequence of that is that now you can't introduce that evidence as new evidence because it was there the whole time. So now Paul is stuck with the much more difficult legally speaking task of proving ineffective assistance of counsel. Although in this case it
seems like that should be open and shut. One would think that this should be pretty straightforward when we look at all the malfeasance and all the incompetents and everything else, and the evidence itself. So how has it unblound thus far? In terms of the post conviction litigation, there.
Was appeals of the conviction itself and some rulings that suggested that there should be a four forty, which in New York is where you'd go back and say, hey, we want to put everything on the record and fix this. There's some issues the failings of the defense in failing to just do basic investigation to speak to the witnesses. I did do that motion, and stunningly it was denied. But now it's in front of a federal judge, Judge Freeman, in New York, and it's been a long way. Paul
has been very unlucky in many ways. As our emotion was submitted prior to COVID, so there's been a halt there, but we're hopeful, and as a lawyer, I have to believe that when you put this type of evidence in front of a judge and show this kind of injustice, that the judge is going to correct it. I do believe that, however you slice it, this is in effective assistance of counsel and this is actual innocence, and we
should be successful in federal court. And I'm relying on the judge to do the right thing, order a hearing, dismiss this, order a new trial. It's so clear that he did not commit this crime.
And so, Paul, for the people who are listening right now and feeling this mixture the same one that I feel of anger and just rage at the wrongdoing in this case and the desire to help to do something to move this forward, what would you like them to do? Is there a website you want people to go to, or is there a change dot org petition or anything like that.
Yeah, there is a change dot org petition. One of them is a petition for clemency. And then the other thing is the website. It's www dot Freepaulcortes dot com and people can visit that site to see everything more in detail and everything about the case.
Well, we're going to have all of the links in the bio in the episode, So please wherever you are, unless you're driving, in which case wait till you stop, but go click on those links because your voice matters and you can help us, help Paul and bring him home where he belongs.
I would also suggest too, that if you are a New Yorker, to contact your state assembly member, your state senator in your district and let them know how you feel and have them try to advocate as well. I've always found that these state senators and state assemblymen are more receptive than you would think, and it's a lot easier for them to reach the ear of the governor than it is for us just normal people.
Oh that's a very good suggestion. And Paul, we have a tradition here of closing the show in a particularly type of way. It's my favorite part of the show, and I think that's probably true for most of our audience. It's called closing arguments. First of all, I thank you again for being here and sharing your story. I know it's not easy, and just for being the beacon of
light that you are. And then what happens is I turn my microphone off and leave yours on, and then I'll just kick back in my chair with my headphones on and just listen for any other thoughts that you want to share. Of course, as we always do, we're going to save Paul for last, because we're here for you, Paul. But first I want to turn over to you, Tony, for any thoughts you want to share that we haven't already covered.
Well, I just want to say something about Paul. I just want to say what an inspiring person he is. Is that he has kept the attitude and the faith and that I think a lot of that comes from the kind of person he is, but also from the support he gets. So I'm just grateful the support of this podcast of you, Jason, and would encourage.
People to continue to give that support because it makes a difference, and I'm hoping that it will also perhaps put additional pressure forth in order to set him free as he should be.
And now all over to you.
I have been incarcerated for sixteen years for crimut and commit I have been fighting since day one to prove my innocence to the court system. I haven't given up, and it is a terrible injustice not only for me and my family, but it's also been a terrible injustice
for Catherine and for her family. I'm so grateful that I have people in my life that do care about me and that are willing to spend so much time and energy and effort and heartache and tears and pain to support me and continue to fight with me for justice. And maybe there's someone listening out there, someone who's dealing with an injustice, someone who's dealing with an addiction and loneliness, some kind of isolation. My message to you is just
don't give up, continue to fight, continue to believe. Just know there are people who care about you. There is a better way than what you're living through right now. Just keep continuing on. I guess that is my message for everyone. I firmly believe that justice will be served and I will be exonerated one day. I don't know when that day is going to be, but keep praying
for it to happen soon. I just thank you. I thank everyone that the Wrongful Conviction podcast will work behind the scenes, and especially my friends, my family, and Tony Murrie, my amazing lawyer who is so bright and intelligent and really in my champion.
Thank you, Thank you for listening to Wrongful Conviction. I'd like to thank our production team Connor Hall, Justin Golden, Jeff Cleiburn, and Kevin Wardis with research by Lyla Robinson. The music in this production was supplied by three time OSCAR nominated composer Jay Ralph. Be sure to follow us on Instagram at Wrongful Conviction, on Facebook at Wrongful Conviction Podcast, and on Twitter at wrong Conviction, as well as at
Lava for Good. On all three platforms, you can also follow me on both TikTok and Instagram at It's Jason Flam. Wrongful Conviction is the production of Lava for Good podcast and association with Signal Company Number one