An Ohio township is facing bankruptcy after a man who spent 20 years in prison for crimes he didn’t commit won a staggering $45million judgment but is still waiting on his payout.
Dean Gillispie, 60, of Fairborn, wants the massive check from Miami Township and its police department after he was jailed for over 20 years for rapes and kidnappings he never committed.
But the township says paying up could force them into bankruptcy, leaving 31,000 residents to bear the cost of a detective’s misconduct.
‘I want it all tomorrow,’ Gillispie told the Akron Beacon Journal. ‘I’m tired of waiting.’
Gillispie won the crushing judgment in 2022 in a federal lawsuit against Miami Township and its former detective, Matthew Scott Moore, after a jury found the cop violated his rights by hiding evidence and rigging witness lineups.
When Daily Mail tried to reach Gillispie, his mother Juana said that the case that consumed two decades of her son’s life has been ‘hell’ for him.
‘There’s no justice,’ she told Daily Mail. ‘They’ve hid evidence.’
She says her son deserves every cent after the ordeal he endured.
Since then, the township has been racking up interest on the unpaid settlement while desperately fighting the massive bill in court.
Dean Gillispie (pictured), 60, of Fairborn, wants the massive check from Miami Township and its police department that sent him away for over 20 years for rapes and kidnappings he never committed
The township says paying up could force them into bankruptcy, leaving 31,000 residents to bear the cost of a detective’s misconduct
But the township’s appeals have failed.
In May 2025, a three-judge panel of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals sided with Gillispie and refused to lower the massive amount.
Now the township is making a last-ditch plea for the full Sixth Circuit Court to weigh in on the case that could destroy their financial future.
Gillispie was convicted of raping and kidnapping twin sisters in one brutal attack and a third woman in a separate assault in 1991.
But the federal jury soon discovered the shocking truth.
Detective Moore had systematically destroyed Gillispie’s defense by hiding crucial evidence and manipulating witness identification procedures.
On top of that, no biological evidence ever tied Gillispie to the horrific crimes that sent him away for the prime years of his life.
The situation has left Miami Township, located in Montgomery County near Dayton, stuck.
The township says it simply cannot afford the $45million judgment and its insurer conveniently went out of business before the claim arose, leaving taxpayers potentially on the hook.
Gillispie was convicted of raping and kidnapping twin sisters in one brutal attack and a third woman in a separate assault in 1991. The Ohio Innocence Project at the University of Cincinnati law school was among those who fought tirelessly to free him and clear his name
Miami Township is pictured above. The prospect of financial ruin hangs over the 31,000 residents who had nothing to do with the detective’s misconduct
According to the Ohio Township Association, the township could slash essential services, create crushing new taxes, negotiate a payment plan, or issue securities to raise the money.
On the other hand, declaring bankruptcy, has never been attempted by an Ohio township and would require approval from the state tax commissioner.
The prospect of financial ruin hangs over the 31,000 residents who had nothing to do with the detective’s misconduct but may end up paying the price through reduced services or higher taxes.
He was finally released from prison in 2011 after 20 years behind bars, exonerated in 2017, and officially declared wrongfully imprisoned in 2021.
The Ohio Innocence Project at the University of Cincinnati law school, former Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro, and his devoted mother fought tirelessly to free him and clear his name.
