Case Of Mistaken Identity Keeps Miami Woman Jailed

MIAMI (CBSMiami) - A case of mistaken identity kept a Miami woman in jail for days.

To make matters worse, she was going to be extradited to another jail thousands of miles away.

On Thursday evening, there is a very different outcome to her situation thanks to her sister who didn't give up on her.

"I was devastated. I need to get my sister out of jail," said Carmen Baker.

Her sister, Maria Sanchez, was in custody on a misdemeanor charge and when she appeared in court, the judge told her she had warrants in Colorado.

Sanchez had never been to Colorado and was being held for a crime she did not commit.

She even faced the possibility of being shipped off to another state.

Sanchez even accepted extradition not understanding what it meant.

No one from the public defender's office, she said, gave her any counsel.

"It took 15 days because what I was already experiencing for no reason, it was hard. Never been in jail. Never hurt nobody. Never drink. Never got pulled over for domestic violence or nothing" Sanchez said.

When her sister found out what happened, she knocked on every door, even called Colorado.

She said she was told, "Ma'am, that's all the information that we have. You're going to have to get an attorney."

Fingerprints and photos of the woman in Colorado did not match her sister.

"It's a broken flawed process. And it's an injustice and the violation of the constitutional rights at all levels," Baker said.

"My sister should have never been in jail," she added.

Attorneys tell us that if you find yourself in this predicament, it is really beneficial to have an advocate, a family member or if you can afford it, to get a lawyer to help state your case.