YOLO COUNTY — A former Davis man was freed from state prison more than one month ago, after a Yolo County judge ruled his rape conviction should be overturned and his nearly 400-year sentence vacated based on new evidence and testimony presented in habeas hearings.
Ajay Dev, 58, has spent the past 16 years in prison for a crime he says he did not commit. Dev was convicted of repeatedly raping his adopted daughter back in 2009. The alleged victim maintains her allegations are truthful, but Judge Janene Beronio found the evidence was insubstantial and that there were significant flaws in Dev’s original trial.
“Based on my review of this entire case, I believe that, in fact, Mr. Dev could be innocent of these charges,” Bernoio ruled on May 16.
He was released from Mule Creek State Prison on his own recognizance and walked free from custody one week later, on May 23…