Julie Hudson, A Philadelphia woman who is studying to get her Ph.D., spent a week in jail after police misidentified her identity and accused her of robbery. Hudson, who never had any crimes on her record, was recently applying for a job when she learned that there is an arrest warrant out for her.
Speaking to CBS Philadelphia, Hudson’s sister Charon Hudson said her 31-year-old sibling went to a Philadelphia police station to clear her name after learning about the warrant.
“My sister went there like ‘hey what’s going on, we need to fix the situation. What do we need me to do? What do you need me to give you?'” Charon told CBS Philadelphia. “And at that point, Philadelphia was like, ‘we have to arrest you because Texas has warrants out for you.’ And the nightmare began. She has never been in the state of Texas. Julie hasn’t caught a plane in years.”
Charon describes her sister as “a loving person.”
“She haven’t [sic] had any run-ins with the law,” Charon said.
The Texas District Attorney’s Office dismissed the charges when it became clear that Hudson was wrongfully arrested for robbery. Hudson was released from jail on Wednesday
The family worried about Hudson’s health as she sat in jail for a week.
“She’s on five medications and till this day, Julie still has not received her medication,” Charon told Click 2 Houston as her loved was jailed.
Police concluded that Hudson was at work in Philadelphia when the robbery happened in Houston. The actual suspect, who was seen on surveillance camera, was also a Black woman. Police said the suspect’s photos on social media also resemble Hudson and the two women have a similar name.
Hudson’s family is now considering legal action.
“We want to shed light on the situation, whether that be education for the department or whether that means more training,” Charon said.
