exoneration

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Family of Teen Executed, Then Exonerated: 'They Need to Pay'

Alexander McClay Williams was exonerated of murder in 2022, nearly a century after he died

(Newser) - The family of the youngest person ever executed in the state of Pennsylvania—a Black 16-year-old sent to the electric chair in 1931 and exonerated by the governor in 2022—is suing the county that prosecuted him. Alexander McClay Williams was convicted of murder in the October 1930 icepick stabbing...

Judge: Man Who Spent 48 Years in Prison Is Innocent

Ruling allows Oklahoma man Glynn Simmons to sue for compensation

(Newser) - A 70-year-old Oklahoma man has been exonerated after spending more than 48 years in prison for a murder he didn't commit—longer than any other wrongfully convicted inmate in US history, according to the National Registry of Exonerations . Glynn Simmons was declared innocent by Judge Amy Palumbo of Oklahoma...

He Wanted to Be a Cop, Ended Up Wrongfully Imprisoned

Brian Beals, 57, spent 35 years behind bars in 'egregious' case

(Newser) - A Chicago man who spent 35 years behind bars for a murder he didn't commit was freed Tuesday after a judge vacated his conviction and dismissed all charges. Brian Beals, 57, struggled to find the right words to describe his feelings as he stood outside Robinson Correctional Center in...

Army Aims to Rectify 'Largest Mass Execution' in Its History

More than a century later, soldier convictions related to the 1917 Houston riots are overturned

(Newser) - It was, as the Washington Post reports, "the largest mass execution carried out in the history of the US Army." On Dec. 11, 1917, 13 Buffalo Soldiers were hanged in a military camp near Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. The African American cavalry soldiers of the...

20 Years After Toddler's Death, an Exoneration

Rosa Jimenez was wrongly imprisoned for murder after child in her care choked

(Newser) - Rosa Jimenez is now officially an innocent woman, just as she has insisted for 20 years. A judge in Travis County, Texas, exonerated her of murder charges on Monday, reports the Austin American-Statesman . Jimenez had been convicted after a 21-month-old child she was babysitting choked on a wad of paper...

Connecticut Exonerates Witches Hanged in 1600s

Lawmakers pass legislation acknowledging miscarriage of justice

(Newser) - Connecticut lawmakers have voted to formally exonerate accused witches who were punished by death nearly 400 years ago. The bill introduced in January by state Sen. Saud Anwar passed the Senate with a 33-1 vote on Thursday after clearing the state House in a 121-30 vote on May 10, per...

No One Has Secured Exonerations Like Josh Tepfer
No One
Has Secured
Exonerations
Like Josh Tepfer
longform
Jan 22, 2023 3:55 PM CST

No One Has Secured Exonerations Like Josh Tepfer

BuzzFeed profiles the Chicago attorney

(Newser) - "He gave me life again," one man said of Josh Tepfer. Multiply the sentiment by at least 288. Writing for BuzzFeed News , Melissa Segura profiles the 47-year-old Chicago attorney, who has led the charge in securing the exonerations of 288 wrongfully convicted people and numbers "among the...

Doctor's Iffy Testimony Put Him in Prison for 25 Years

Thomas Rhodes was convicted of killing his wife, but a review has tossed that verdict

(Newser) - A Minnesota man who served nearly 25 years in connection with his wife's death walked out of prison on Friday after authorities vacated his murder convictions, citing a problem with expert testimony from a controversial doctor, per the AP . Thomas Rhodes, who is now 63, was convicted in 1998...

Podcasters Help Clear 2 Men of Murder Charges

Both were convicted of murder in the 1996 shooting death of their friend

(Newser) - In this case, a true-crime podcast didn't just recount an old case—it helped free two men wrongfully imprisoned because of it, reports CNN . Darrell Lee Clark and co-defendant Cain Joshua Storey were exonerated of murder last week in the 1996 shooting death of their friend Brian Bowling. All...

He Was Exonerated but Penniless. There Was One Solution

A look at the finance firms who lend to exonerees at sky-high interest rates

(Newser) - It's an unexpected subset of people to monetize: exonerated former inmates who are hoping to be compensated for the injustice they suffered. But as Corey Kilgannon reports for the New York Times , companies have in recent years begun doing that very thing, offering exonerees hefty advances at staggering interest...

3 Exonerated After 28 Years as Prosecutors Point to Killer Cop

Ex-cop Len Davis, now on death row, covered up crimes by his drug dealer associates

(Newser) - Three men imprisoned for 28 years were wrongfully convicted of murder in a 1994 drive-by shooting, now linked to two former police officers who happened to arrive on the scene before the lone eyewitness even finished calling 911, a New Orleans court heard Wednesday. Bernell Juluke, Kunta Gable, and Leroy...

Nearly 3 Decades Later, an Exoneration

Herman Williams' wrongful conviction for ex-wife's murder tore family apart

(Newser) - "Don't give up." That's the message from a man who was just exonerated of a first-degree murder conviction for which he spent almost 29 years in prison. Herman Williams left Illinois' Sheridan Correctional Center on Tuesday after the Lake County State's Attorney's Office acknowledged...

Prisoner Convicted at 17 Exonerated 36 Years Later

Sullivan Walter freed after judge vacates conviction for New Orleans rape

(Newser) - A Black man wrongfully convicted as a teenager for a New Orleans rape more than 36 years ago was ordered freed after a judge threw out his conviction. Sullivan Walter, now 53, used a handkerchief to wipe away tears as a state district judge formally vacated his conviction for a...

After 329 Years, a 'Witch' Is Cleared

Elizabeth Johnson Jr. was convicted in the Salem Witch Trials

(Newser) - The last of those wrongly convicted during the Salem Witch Trials has been cleared 329 years later thanks to the hard work of a Massachusetts teacher and her eighth-grade students. They pushed to have Elizabeth Johnson Jr. exonerated of witchcraft. Johnson faced allegations along with many of her extended family...

Forgotten 6th Member of Central Park 5 to Be Exonerated
Forgotten 6th
Member of
Central Park 5
Exonerated
UPDATED
Jul 25, 2022 11:34 PM CDT

Forgotten 6th Member of Central Park 5 Exonerated

Steven Lopez was arrested along with 5 other Black, Latino teens in 1989

(Newser) - Update: As expected, Steven Lopez had his conviction on a charge related to the "Central Park 5" case overturned during a Monday hearing. Lopez didn't give a statement in court and left without speaking to reporters, the AP reports. “Mr. Lopez is looking for privacy at this...

Man in Prison for 31 Years Finds Savior in Novice Attorney

Natlie Figgers, out of law school just 2 years, helps free wrongly convicted Thomas Raynard James

(Newser) - It started with a murder in Miami, a crime that sent Thomas Raynard James to prison for more than three decades. In April, however, a judge vacated James' conviction and set him free, thanks to the efforts of an attorney just two years out of law school who was determined...

Reynaldo Munoz: 3,000th on a Troubling List

His is the 3,000th exoneration recorded since 1989 in the US

(Newser) - This exoneration story does not include a tearful family reunion outside the courthouse. Reynaldo Munoz already served 30 years for a murder he did not commit and had been out on parole since 2016, living with his high school sweetheart and family in Florida, per USA Today . But his story...

Internal Capitol Police Probe Rules on Cop Who Shot Babbitt

Memo says unidentified officer has been exonerated; 'no further action will be taken'

(Newser) - Donald Trump has long been railing against the Capitol Police officer who fatally shot loyalist Ashli Babbitt , an Air Force veteran killed during the Jan. 6 riot—which means the former president likely won't be pleased to hear the results of an internal probe by the department. Per a...

Name of Accused Witch to Be Cleared, Finally

8th-graders take up the case of Elizabeth Johnson Jr., accused in the Salem witch trials

(Newser) - More than three centuries after a Massachusetts woman was wrongly convicted of witchcraft and sentenced to death, she's finally on the verge of being exonerated—thanks to a curious eighth-grade civics class, per the AP . State Sen. Diana DiZoglio, a Democrat from Methuen, has introduced legislation to clear the...

2 Men Go Free 30 Years After Wrongful Convictions

Carlton Roman, Christopher Ellis were released this week in New York City

(Newser) - Two Black men from New York City who each spent more than 30 years in prison for murder were freed Monday after state judges found their convictions were unjust. "I'm not the only innocent person in there," Carlton Roman said, per the New York Times , following his...

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