Missouri Man Exonerated After 42 Years Behind Bars

21

A Missouri man wrongfully convicted of a triple murder in 1978 and imprisoned for more than 42 years has been exonerated and released. Kevin Strickland, 62, has maintained his innocence since his arrest at age 18. He was sentenced in June 1979. Mr Strickland said outside court: "I didn't think this day would come." It was the longest wrongful incarceration in state history, but under Missouri law he is unlikely to receive any financial compensation. According to data from the National Registry of Exonerations, which has logged exonerations since 1989, it would also be the seventh longest wrongful sentence acknowledged in the US. A judge on Tuesday ordered the immediate release of Mr Strickland from state custody, after 15,487 days behind bars. Lawyers for the Midwest Innocence Project, who have worked for months to help free Mr Strickland, told the BBC they were "ecstatic" about the news. "We were confident any judge who saw the evidence would find Mr Strickland is innocent and that is exactly what happened," said Midwest Innocence Project legal director Tricia Rojo Bushnell in a statement. She added: "Nothing will give him the 43 years he has lost and he returns home to a state that will not pay him a cent for the time it stole from him. That is not justice." The state of Missouri only compensates prisoners exonerated through DNA evidence, not because of eyewitness testimony, according to the Midwest Innocence Project. Mr Strickland was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for 50 years after he was linked to the deadly ransacking of a home in Kansas City on 25 April 1978. On that night, four assailants shot three people inside the home: Sherrie Black, 22, Larry Ingram, 22, and John Walker, 20. A fourth victim - Cynthia Douglas, 20 - escaped with injuries after pretending to be dead. On a hunch from her sister's boyfriend, police arrested the teenage Mr Strickland and then reportedly pressured Ms Douglas to pick him out of a line-up. His first trial in 1979 ended with a hung jury, after one black juror on a 12-member panel held out for his acquittal. At his second trial, an all-white jury found Mr Strickland guilty of one count of capital murder and two counts of second-degree murder. Years later, Ms Douglas would recant her lone eyewitness testimony, writing to the Midwest Innocence Project that "things were not clear back then, but now I know more and would like to help this person if I can". Ms Douglas died before she could formally recant her testimony against Mr Strickland, but her mother, sister and daughter have all testified in court that she picked "the wrong guy". Prosecutors in Jackson County began reviewing Mr Strickland's conviction last November and - under a new Missouri law - filed a motion calling for his immediate exoneration and release. "Under these unique circumstances, the Court's confidence in Strickland's conviction is so undermined that it cannot stand, and the judgment of conviction must be set aside," wrote Judge James Welsh in Tuesday's ruling. Ms Rojo Bushnell of the Midwest Innocence Project said the process has "shown how incredibly difficult it is for the system to correct a mistake. The prosecutor agreed Mr Strickland is innocent and it still took months. It should not be that hard."

Use The App To Win N1m

NB: Stories are shared by community members. The article does NOT represent the official view of NaijaWorld and the author is SOLELY RESPONSIBLE for this article
Comments

Related Stories
thumbnail
Innocent Man Spends 26 Years on Death Row for Buying Stolen Generator in Nigeria
2 h
thumbnail
Cult Violence in Benin City Claims Five Lives Amid Rising Tensions
5 h
thumbnail
Agunechemba Appoints Veteran Journalist as New Spokesperson for Anambra Security Group
31 m
thumbnail
Iyabo Ojo Opens Up: Her Personal Fight Against Child Abuse and Support for Princess
6 h
thumbnail
Innocent Man Reunites With Mother After 26 Years on Death Row in Nigeria
12 h
thumbnail
25 Years of Wrongful Imprisonment Ends in Heartwarming Reunion with Mother
13 h
thumbnail
Niger State Security: Arrest of Nine Women Linked to Boko Haram
14 h
thumbnail
NDLEA Arrests Brother of Tinubu Ally with 414kg Cannabis in Lagos
17 h
thumbnail
Tragedy in Bauchi: Man Kills Father During Domestic Dispute
16 h
thumbnail
Nigeria’s Police Chief Attends AFRIPOL Summit on Combating Transnational Crime
17 h
thumbnail
EFCC Re-Arraigns TStv CEO Bright Echefu Over ₦1B Fraud and Tax Evasion Cases
18 h
thumbnail
Lagos Land Dispute Turns Deadly as Engineer Murder Sparks Police Arrests and Allegations of Cover-Up
23 h
thumbnail
Justice for Mohbad: VDM Sparks New Debate and Reopens Old Wounds
20 h
thumbnail
EFCC Arraigns Crypto Platform Operators Over $1 Billion Investment Scam
1 d
thumbnail
Niger State Security Forces Rescue 35 Kidnapped Victims After Over a Year in Captivity
1 d
thumbnail
AGF Approves Prosecution of Ex-Senator Andy Uba Over N400 Million Fraud Allegation
1 d
thumbnail
Enugu Police Successfully Arrest Suspect in Nsukka Hotel Murder Case
1 d
thumbnail
Mob Sets Man on Fire for Theft in Lagos Market
1 d
thumbnail
Security Expert Questions Authenticity of Bello Turji’s Surrender
1 d
thumbnail
Russian Military Graft Scandal: Ex-Deputy Chief Sentenced to 17 Years Amid Political Turmoil
1 d
Related Stories
thumbnail
Innocent Man Spends 26 Years on Death Row for Buying Stolen Generator in Nigeria
2 h
thumbnail
Cult Violence in Benin City Claims Five Lives Amid Rising Tensions
5 h
thumbnail
Agunechemba Appoints Veteran Journalist as New Spokesperson for Anambra Security Group
31 m
thumbnail
Iyabo Ojo Opens Up: Her Personal Fight Against Child Abuse and Support for Princess
6 h
thumbnail
Innocent Man Reunites With Mother After 26 Years on Death Row in Nigeria
12 h
thumbnail
25 Years of Wrongful Imprisonment Ends in Heartwarming Reunion with Mother
13 h
thumbnail
Niger State Security: Arrest of Nine Women Linked to Boko Haram
14 h
thumbnail
NDLEA Arrests Brother of Tinubu Ally with 414kg Cannabis in Lagos
17 h
thumbnail
Tragedy in Bauchi: Man Kills Father During Domestic Dispute
16 h
thumbnail
Nigeria’s Police Chief Attends AFRIPOL Summit on Combating Transnational Crime
17 h
thumbnail
EFCC Re-Arraigns TStv CEO Bright Echefu Over ₦1B Fraud and Tax Evasion Cases
18 h
thumbnail
Lagos Land Dispute Turns Deadly as Engineer Murder Sparks Police Arrests and Allegations of Cover-Up
23 h
thumbnail
Justice for Mohbad: VDM Sparks New Debate and Reopens Old Wounds
20 h
thumbnail
EFCC Arraigns Crypto Platform Operators Over $1 Billion Investment Scam
1 d
thumbnail
Niger State Security Forces Rescue 35 Kidnapped Victims After Over a Year in Captivity
1 d
thumbnail
AGF Approves Prosecution of Ex-Senator Andy Uba Over N400 Million Fraud Allegation
1 d
thumbnail
Enugu Police Successfully Arrest Suspect in Nsukka Hotel Murder Case
1 d
thumbnail
Mob Sets Man on Fire for Theft in Lagos Market
1 d
thumbnail
Security Expert Questions Authenticity of Bello Turji’s Surrender
1 d
thumbnail
Russian Military Graft Scandal: Ex-Deputy Chief Sentenced to 17 Years Amid Political Turmoil
1 d