Killing of Charles Flynn

On April 3–4, 1989, 22-year-old Charles Lambert "Chip" Flynn was shot and killed in a citrus grove in Brevard County, Florida. Earlier that night, Flynn had met with his ex-girlfriend Kim Hallock, and the two smoked marijuana, had sex, and later sat in his truck at Holder Park in Mims, Florida. According to Hallock, a man she identified as Crosley Alexander Green approached them armed with a gun, tied Flynn's hands with a shoelace, robbed them, and drove them to a citrus grove. Hallock said Flynn managed to retrieve a gun and fire several shots before she fled on foot to call police. Officers arriving at the scene found Flynn with a single gunshot wound to the chest; his first words were reportedly "Get me outta here. I wanna go home," and he did not mention a robbery or an assailant. He died before an ambulance arrived. At the scene, only Hallock's and Flynn's fingerprints were found, no gunshot residue was found on Flynn's hands, and the only bullet recovered was the one that killed him.

Following a tip and a photo lineup that Green's later appellate attorneys described as suggestive, Green was arrested on June 8, 1989, and charged with kidnapping, robbery, and murder. At his 1989–1990 trial, prosecutors presented shoeprint evidence and three witnesses—including Green's sister, Sheila Green—who claimed Green had confessed. All three witnesses later recanted, with Sheila Green stating she was pressured by police. Green refused a plea deal and was found guilty of first-degree murder by an all-white jury on September 5, 1990, and sentenced to death.

Over the following decades, Green's case underwent extensive appeals. A 1993 motion for a new trial was denied, and the Florida Supreme Court upheld his conviction in 1994. Private investigators, working without pay from 1999, uncovered issues with the shoeprint evidence and testimony, and noted that the truck involved required manual transmission skills questioned in relation to the alleged crime. A 2000 state DNA investigation found no evidence connecting Green to the crime, according to a CBS report from that year, though later reports indicated weak DNA evidence in the truck that could have originated from Green or a family member. Green's death sentence was vacated in 2005, and after further appellate proceedings, he was resentenced to life in 2008. Additional appeals in 2010–2011, including new alibi witnesses, were unsuccessful.

In 2018, a federal court found that prosecutor Christopher White had withheld evidence from Green's defense, and Green was granted a new trial; this was appealed by the State of Florida. Green was released from prison to house arrest pending appellate review. In March 2022, Green's conviction was reinstated by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Throughout, Green has maintained his innocence, and questions have persisted about inconsistencies in Hallock's account, including changing descriptions of the alleged weapon and physical evidence. Investigators and officials, including responding officers Diane Clarke and Mark Rixey, have suggested Hallock may bear responsibility for Flynn's death, a claim denied by prosecutor Christopher White.