NBC News · Man on death row fights conviction after testimony from hypnotized witness

1. 1. Charles Flores was sentenced to death row in Texas largely based on the court testimony of Jill Bargainer, an eyewitness who identified him after undergoing hypnosis.
2. 2. On January 29, 1998, after 64-year-old Betty Black was killed in Farmers Branch, Texas, her neighbor Jill Bargainer reported seeing two white men with long hair getting out of a distinctive VW Bug in the victim's driveway.
3. 3. Despite her original description, and even after being hypnotized where she reiterated seeing a long-haired man, Bargainer identified Charles Flores as the passenger in the car for the first time at his murder trial 13 months later.
4. 4. Eyewitness identification is frequently erroneous, and according to the National Academy of Sciences, hypnosis can intensify this problem, potentially creating or bolstering false memories.
5. 5. In 2023, the Texas state legislature enacted a law stipulating that all statements made during or after a hypnotic session are inadmissible in criminal trials, though this reform came too late for Charles Flores.
6. 6. Former narcotics sergeant Jeff Aspraner points to other circumstantial evidence against Flores, including the hiding and burning of the VW Bug, and Flores's repeated attempts to evade law enforcement.
7. 7. Charles Flores steadfastly maintains his innocence, asserting that his evasive actions were driven by fear for his life, not guilt, and that Texas is planning to execute an innocent man based on flawed eyewitness testimony.