Natale Cosenza spent 16 years wrongfully imprisoned for a 2000 home invasion, after Worcester police officers gave false testimony and manipulated the victim into falsely identifying Mr. Cosenza as her attacker. His conviction was overturned in 2016.
Mr. Cosenza sued Worcester and the Worcester detectives whose misconduct led to his wrongful conviction. In 2022, a federal jury awarded Nat $8 million in compensation for his ordeal.
Last week, a confidential settlement agreement was reached, with Worcester agreeing to pay Mr. Cosenza a portion of the verdict amount.
Mr. Cosenza issued the following statement in response:
“The past 24 years have been nothing short of hell for me and my family—especially my parents and my two daughters, who my parents had to raise while I was wrongfully imprisoned. My father, who along with my mother sacrificed their entire financial future to care for my children, was diagnosed with stage 4 liver cancer just months before I was finally able to overturn this horrendous conviction. Although I was blessed to share a short amount of time with him after my release, I had to watch the man who gave everything for me and my daughters pass away not long after I came home.
“I am grateful for this settlement. After more than two decades of extreme hardship, pain, stress, and suffering that my family and I endured, we can finally begin to find peace and move forward into a better chapter of our lives. My long fight to recover my life and expose the lies, falsehoods, and cover-ups committed by Worcester and its police is finally at an end.
“I would also like to thank my family for always believing in me and standing by me fighting this for the past 24 years. I would also like to thank my girlfriend of the past 7 years for enduring all the struggles of fighting this lawsuit. I love you all.
“On behalf of myself and my entire family, I want to express my deepest gratitude to Loevy & Loevy, Chauncey Wood, Lisa Kavanaugh, Paul Rudof, and every legal assistant who stood with us through this 24-year battle. Thank you for believing in the truth, for fighting tirelessly, and for never giving up. I would not be here today if it weren’t for all of you. You saved my life and helped bring us to this long-overdue moment of justice.”
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Contact:
Michael McDunnah, Dir. of Communications, 312.371.5871, mcdunnah@loevy.com
Mr. Cosenza is represented in his suit by attorneys Jon Loevy, Debra Loevy, Locke Bowman, Gayle Horn, Tara Thompson, and Steve Art of Loevy & Loevy, and by attorney Chauncey Wood of Wood & Nathanson, LLP in Boston.
