Kevin Cooper (born Richard Goodman ; January 8, 1958) is an American
man currently imprisoned at San Quentin State Prison's death row. Cooper was
found guilty of four murders in the Chino Hills area of California in 1983.
Cooper's conviction has garnered repeated attention from both Nicholas Kristof
in the New York Times and Erin Moriarty on the CBS News program "48 Hours."
There have been accusations that Cooper received an inadequate defense, as
well as prosecutorial misconduct such as destruction of evidence, withholding
exculpatory evidence from the defense, planting of evidence, brainwashing to
witnesses, and perjured testimony by the Sheriff's Department.