<!-- Deleted image removed: thumb|Coleman was featured on Time Magazine -->'''Roger Keith Coleman''' (convicted and executed for the murder of his sister-in-law, Wanda McCoy.  Coleman's case drew national attention before and after his execution because of his repeated claims of innocence.  In 2006, Virginia Governor Mark Warner announced that recently re-examined DNA evidence had conclusively proven Coleman's guilt.

==The crime==
Nineteen-year-old Wanda McCoy was attacked in her home on March 10, 1981. She was raped, stabbed to death, and nearly beheaded.  There was little sign of a struggle and it was assumed she had allowed her attacker into the house. Roger Coleman, her sister's husband, had access to the house and immediately became a suspect. Coleman, who worked in a mine, had reported to work that night but had left when his shift was dismissed. A fingerprint was found on the front screen door and a pry mark on the front door molding, and bloodstains inside the house. The victim had broken fingernails, cuts on the hands, and a dark, dusty substance on her body. Moreover flecks of blood on Coleman's pants were the same blood type as the victims.

==The case==
Coleman was convicted of raping and murdering McCoy in 1982.

The prosecution for the case asserted:
* The lack of forced entry showed McCoy knew her attacker
* Coleman had been previously convicted of attempted rape 
* A hair found on McCoy's body was similar to Coleman's
* Blood found on Coleman's clothes was McCoy's blood type
* A fellow prisoner maintained that Coleman had privately confessed the crime to him

Coleman's defense maintained:

* There was indeed evidence of forced entry (the pry mark on the door)
* DNA tests of the semen found on the victim's body implicated more than one person
* The prosecution claimed there was no struggle, however the victim had cuts, a bruise in her arm, and broken fingernails
* Coleman had a documented alibi and several witnesses who gave affidavits

==State appeals==
Coleman's initial appeal to the Virginia Supreme Court was denied, and the Supreme Court of the United States denied certiorari.  Coleman then filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in the Circuit Court for Buchanan County, raising several federal constitutional claims for the first time.  A two day evidentiary hearing was held, the court denied all of Coleman's claims, and on September 4, 1986, the court entered its final judgment.

Coleman next appealed to the Virginia Supreme Court, but this appeal was dismissed on the motion of the Commonwealth because his notice of appeal was not filed timely.  Virginia Supreme Court Rules  require that a notice of appeal be filed within 30 days of entry of the final judgment; Coleman's notice of appeal was filed on October 7, which was 33 days after the circuit court entered its judgment.  

==Federal petition for habeas corpus==
After his appeal was dismissed on procedural grounds, Coleman petitioned in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia for a writ of habeas corpus.  However, federal courts generally may not review a state court's denial of a federal constitutional claim if the denial is based on a state procedural default that is independent of the federal claim and is sufficient to support the prisoner's continued custody.  Since Coleman was in procedural default of his appeal in state court, this was independent of his federal constitutional claims, and was adequate to support his continued custody, he was ineligible for relief in a federal habeas corpus proceeding.  Although finding that Coleman was in procedural default, the District Court addressed all of his claims, finding them without merit.  The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed the District Court's ruling, as did the Supreme Court of the United States (see footnote 4).

==Controversy and execution==
In 1990, new DNA tests seemed to add to evidence against Coleman by putting him within the 2% of the population who could have committed the crime.  Some argued that DNA and blood tests combined reduced this figure to 0.2%.

thumb|Coleman on the cover of ''Time'' magazine
While on death row, Coleman's claims of innocence reached an international audience.  Time magazine put Coleman on its cover.  Virginia Governor Douglas Wilder received 13,000 calls and letters about Coleman from around the world, nearly all in favor of clemency.  Wilder arranged a secret, last-minute polygraph test for Coleman, who failed.  Coleman shared a final meal of cold pizza with James McCloskey, executive director of Centurion Ministries, who had been working since 1988 to prove Coleman's innocence.

'''Roger Keith Coleman''' (* 1. November 1958; † 20. Mai 1992) war ein Bergarbeiter aus Grundy, Virginia, der wegen Mordes an seiner Schwägerin Wanda McCoy hingerichtet wurde. 

McCoy wurde am 10. März 1981 vergewaltigt und ermordet. Es gab wenige Spuren eines Kampfes, außerdem schien es, als hätte sie den Angreifer selbst in ihr Haus gelassen, obwohl sie nur selten die Türe öffnete, wenn sie allein zu Hause war. Roger Coleman hatte Zugang zu dem Haus und wurde dadurch verdächtig. Coleman hatte sich in dieser Nacht zum Dienst in der Mine gemeldet, verließ ihn allerdings nach Ende seiner Schicht. An der Eingangstür wurde ein Fingerabdruck gefunden, und an der Türleiste Spuren eines Brecheisens, sowie Blutflecke im Haus. Das Opfer hatte abgebrochene Fingernägel, Schnitte in den Händen und eine dunkle, staubige Substanz auf ihrem Körper.

Durch den damaligen Stand der Genanalyse war es nur möglich festzustellen, dass Coleman zu den 2% der Bevölkerung gehörte, zu denen die sichergestellten Samenspuren passten. Außerdem habe die Leiche lt. Verteidigung Samenspuren von zwei verschiedenen Männern aufgewiesen und es habe einen Mann gegeben, der sich gebrüstet habe, die junge Frau ermordet zu haben.

Am 5. Januar 2006 ordnete erstmals in der US-amerikanischen Rechtsgeschichte Virginias Gouverneur Mark R. Warner eine erneute DNA-Analyse an, die zur Entlastung eines bereits Hingerichteten hätte führen können. Allerdings kam die am 12. Januar 2006 veröffentlichte Analyse zu dem Ergebnis, dass die sichergestellten Samenspuren tatsächlich von Coleman stammten. Coleman hatte buchstäblich bis zu seinem letzten Atemzug auf seiner Unschuld bestanden. Zu seinen letzten Worten, schon auf dem elektrischen Stuhl sitzend, gehörte der Satz: ''"An innocent man is going to be murdered tonight."'' (''Ein Unschuldiger wird heute Nacht ermordet.'') 