• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home Page
  • About this website and the writer
  • Testimonials
  • Archives
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Contact Page

Defrosting Cold Cases

Unsolved cases that need your attention

  • Cold Case Database
    • Index
      • Cases Index A-G
      • Cases Index H-N
      • Cases Index O-Z
    • Summaries
      • Case Summaries A-G
      • Case Summaries H-N
      • Case Summaries O-Z
  • Two Research Methods
  • Search Tips
  • Case of the Month
  • Guest Writers
  • Book Reviews
You are here: Home / Cold Case News / Adam Gray: exonerated and awarded $27 million

Adam Gray: exonerated and awarded $27 million

May 26, 2023 By Alice

Photography AdS
Photography AdS

I told you to watch the case of Adam Gray. The same flawed and overhauled technology used in forensic arson detection that resulted in Cameron Todd Willingham’s death sentence and that bears eerie similarities to Kenneth Richey’s case, moved a federal jury to award Adam Gray $27 million.

Wrongfully convicted, Adam served 24 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. He was 14 years old when he was sent to serve life in prison.

“Gray was convicted in connection to a fire that killed 74-year-old Margaret Mesa and 54-year-old Peter McGuinness. He was convicted of first-degree murder and aggravated arson, but was exonerated in 2017 after a series of events led prosecutors to conclude that his confession had been coerced, and that physical evidence from the scene did not link him to the fire.”

Reviews of old arson cases show that many conclusions drawn back then, are simply wrong. The most important mistakes involve:

  • puddle configurations
  • pour patterns
  • burn trailers and
  • V-shaped burning marks

At the Willingham trial, V-shaped burn marks were interpreted as THE sole indicator of the place where the fire started (e.g. point of origin). Now we know that V-shaped burn marks occur repeatedly during flashover and do not exclusively tell us where the fire started.

Flashover happens when the radiant heat of the flames changes a fire in a room to a room on fire. Read it twice because there is a difference. Flashover can happen within minutes and without a liquid accelerant. As forensic arson detection evolved we now know that ordinary pieces of furniture can contain flammable materials. An example is upholstery.

To learn more bout Adam Gray and his case, please check out the National Registry of Exonerations.

Thank you for sharing!

  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
  • Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon
  • Click to print (Opens in new window) Print
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • More
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Pocket
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window) WhatsApp
  • Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window) Telegram
  • Click to share on Nextdoor (Opens in new window) Nextdoor

Related

Filed Under: Cold Case News, Forensics Tagged With: Adam Gray, Forensic arson detection, Wrongful Convictions

Primary Sidebar

Dina Fort

Top Posts & Pages

  • Justice for Antonella Mattina
  • Cold Case Database
  • Case of the Month: Hinterkaifeck
  • Remembering Ronnie and Connie Collins
  • Daniel K. Wood, Jr. (Oct. 30, 1941 - Jul. 23, 1954)

Categories

  • Book Reviews (182)
  • Case of the Month (130)
  • Cold Case News (226)
  • Forensics (287)
  • Guest Bloggers (57)
  • Miscarriages of Justice (131)
  • Missing Persons (126)
  • Unidentified (32)
  • Unsolved (524)
  • Zeigler (65)

Author Notes

Since 2009, I write about unsolved cases that need renewed media attention. I only do research and leave active investigations to the authorities.

My posts cover homicides, missing and unidentified people, wrongful convictions, and forensics as related to unsolved cases.

On book reviews: I only review select works of true crime, crime fiction, and historical fiction/mysteries. The stories have to fit my website's theme, tone, and research. It is my prerogative to not review a book. Please check the FAQ page for more.

My databases are free to the public. Cases are sorted by the victim’s last name.

If you have any questions about my website please check the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page, the About page, and the tabs in both menu bars. If you cannot find the answers there, please contact me.

Thank you,

Alice de Sturler
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Subscribe to DCC by email

Enter your email address to get new posts notifications in your inbox

Copyright

If you use my work, please add a link back. Let your readers know where you found your information. I do the same for you. Thank you!

Protected by Copyscape

Copyright © 2025 ·News Pro · Genesis Framework by StudioPress · WordPress