Brooklyn pals convicted for 1987 Times Square on brink of having their names cleared

NEW YORK — Nearly four decades after they were busted for the New Year’s Day murder of a French tourist in Times Square, two childhood friends who have long professed their innocence appear to be on the brink of finally clearing their names. In an Oct. 6 letter a top prosecutor in the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office asked a judge for a “pre-motion conference to discuss an anticipated motion to vacate the convictions” of Eric Smokes and David Warren. The letter from Terri Rosenblatt, head of the Post-Conviction Justice Unit (PCJU) said the DA’s office is “prepared to concede … that there i...