Marietta Seven

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James Creamer and six co-defendants were convicted of murdering two physicians. The crime occurred in May 1971 in Marietta, Georgia. The victims, Warren and Rosina Matthews, were found shot to death in their home in what appeared to be an attempted robbery. The seven were arrested and prosecuted almost entirely on the word of Deborah Ann Kidd who said she had accompanied the men to the Matthews home. Kidd testified that Creamer was the shooter. All seven were given life sentences, except for Creamer, who was given a death sentence. In 1974, the Georgia Supreme Court unanimously upheld all the convictions and sentences.

In 1975, an investigation by the Atlanta Constitution newspaper revealed that Kidd's testimony had major credibility problems. She had claimed to be high on drugs at the time of the crime and had a hypnotist refresh her memory (whose tapes show he fed her case facts). One woman she named as part of the gang was known to be out of state at the time. Transcripts of her statements had been withheld from the defense. Kidd had given many versions of events that transpired at the crime scene. The identity of the shooter changed from one version to another, as did her identification of those who were present. At one point she confessed to shooting the victims herself. It was also discovered that Kidd was romantically involved with one of the detectives assigned to the case.

Kidd admitted she lied in her trial testimony. In addition, Billy Birt, a death-row inmate, confessed to committing the crime with two other men. In 1975, the convictions of the Marietta Seven were reversed and the state dropped charges. The DA claimed he was not convinced of the men’s innocence and declined to prosecute Kidd for perjury.