US state lacks evidence, frees man after 30 years

[Lite Beer]

US state lacks evidence, frees man after 30 years
KIM CHANDLER, Associated Press


BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (AP) — A man who spent nearly 30 years on Alabama's death row walked free Friday hours after prosecutors acknowledged that the only evidence they had against him couldn't prove he committed the crime.

Ray Hinton was 29 when he was arrested for two 1985 killings. Freed at age 58, with grey hair and a beard, he was embraced by his sobbing sisters, who said "thank you Jesus," as they wrapped their arms around him outside the Jefferson County Jail.

Hinton had won a new trial last year after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that his trial counsel was inadequate. Prosecutors on Wednesday moved to drop the case after new ballistics tests contradicted those done three decades ago. Experts couldn't match crime scene bullets to a gun found in Hinton's home.

"I shouldn't have sat on death row for 30 years. All they had to do was test the gun," Hinton said.

The state of Alabama offered no immediate apology.

"When you think you are high and mighty and you are above the law, you don't have to answer to nobody. But I got news for them, everybody who played a part in sending me to death row, you will answer to God," Hinton said. "They just didn't take me from my family and friends. They had every intention of executing me for something I didn't do," Hinton said.

Hinton was arrested in 1985 for the murders of two Birmingham fast-food restaurant managers after the survivor of a third restaurant robbery identified Hinton as the gunman. Prosecution experts said at the trial that bullets recovered at all three crime scenes matched Hinton's mother's .38 caliber Smith & Wesson revolver. He was convicted despite an alibi: He had been at work inside a locked warehouse 15 minutes away during the third shooting.

"The only thing we've ever had to connect him to the two crimes here in Birmingham was the bullets matching the gun that was recovered from his home," Chief Deputy District Attorney John R. Bowers, Jr. told The Associated Press on Thursday.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that Hinton had "constitutionally deficient" representation at trial because his defense lawyer wrongly thought he had only $1,000 to hire a ballistics expert to rebut the state's case. The only expert willing to take the job at that price struggled so much under cross-examination that jurors chuckled at his responses.

Attorney Bryan Stevenson, who directs Alabama's Equal Justice Initiative, called it "a case study" in what is wrong with the U.S. judicial system. He said the trial was tainted by racial bias and that Hinton, an impoverished African-American man, did not have access to a better defense.

"We have a system that doesn't do the right thing when the right thing is apparent. Prosecutors should have done these tests years ago," Stevenson said.

The independent experts Stevenson hired to re-examine this evidence after taking on Hinton's case in 1999 "were quite unequivocal that this gun was not connected to these crimes," he said. "That's the real shame to me. What happened this week to get Mr. Hinton released could have happened at least 15 years ago."

Stevenson then tried in vain for years to persuade the state of Alabama to re-examine the evidence. The bullets only got a new look as prosecutors and defense lawyers tangled over a possible retrial following the Supreme Court ruling.

The result: Three forensics experts could not positively conclude whether the bullets were fired from Hinton's revolver, or whether they came from the same gun at all, according to the state's request to dismiss the case against Hinton. Bowers said the "bullets were so badly mutilated that they did not have the necessary microscopic markings to make a conclusive determination."

Hinton was one of the longest-serving inmates on Alabama's death row, and is one of the longest-serving inmates to be released in the United States. But Stevenson said there are many others behind bars who were convicted "based on bad science."

"We've allowed too many people to assert things in court that are not credible or reliable, painted over with this kind of scientific expertise which means there could be a lot of wrongful convictions," Stevenson said.

-- (c) Associated Press 2015-04-04

[GentlemanJim]

I cannot imagine the mental anguish and torture of spending 30 years on death row knowing you are innocent of the crime! I hope the state of Alabama awards suitable restitution.

[Somtamnication]

Glad he wasn't executed!

[puukao]

In some states, they end up paying about 1 million (or much more) to the person incarcerated. I think I read of a guy getting 3 million.

The 150 people on the airplane, I read, get at most 150,000 USD. And they are trying to give them 50k for each life.

It's one weird world.....

[GentlemanJim]

In some states, they end up paying about 1 million (or much more) to the person incarcerated. I think I read of a guy getting 3 million.

The 150 people on the airplane, I read, get at most 150,000 USD. And they are trying to give them 50k for each life.

It's one weird world.....

And the woman who puts her poodle in the micro wave or the woman that spills MacD coffee in her lap get 5M+ each

[wirat69]

And the woman who puts her poodle in the micro wave or the woman that spills MacD coffee in her lap get 5M+ each

Hmmmm.... do you think that they cooked the evidence?

[siampolee]

And there is criticism of the Thai judicial system by some people and the dubious verdicts reached by strange financial resources or the lack thereof regarding those financial sources..

Might this indicate that the Thai judicial system is based upon the Alabama system, or that the Alabama system is based upon the Thai system,?

Edited April 4, 2015 by siampolee

[DaddyWarbucks]

Glad he wasn't executed!

Cases like this are a good argument against the death penalty.

[KarenBravo]

......and this is the reason why state sponsored murder, the judicial death sentence should be repealed.

[NeverSure]

I cannot imagine the mental anguish and torture of spending 30 years on death row knowing you are innocent of the crime! I hope the state of Alabama awards suitable restitution.

I agree but nothing is suitable. There's no way to give a man back 30 years of his life, nor to undo the mental pain he suffered through it all.

Under US law the only thing that can come close to repaying him is money. Fact.

There are going to be truckloads of it and that won't be enough.

[Linky]

And there is criticism of the Thai judicial system by some people and the dubious verdicts reached by strange financial resources or the lack thereof regarding those financial sources..

Might this indicate that the Thai judicial system is based upon the Alabama system, or that the Alabama system is based upon the Thai system,?

So you are saying the Thai system is 30 years behind the Alabama system.

[Chonburiram]

This is, why I think death sentences should be carried out immediately.

This guy got a roof over the head and 3 meals per day for 30(!) years on tax payers money. The compensation will be paid from the same coffers. How stupid is that?

[Credo]

There are a number of NGO's, such as the Innocence Project, that act on behalf of criminals. This guy was probably lucky that he got the death penalty as those cases get greater attention from these projects. Prisoners serving life just get to sit in the queue, and that can be a very long wait.

I wonder if anyone lets Thai prisoners get a review outside the legal system (or inside for that matter)?

[Neurath]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Glad he wasn't executed! alt=bah.gif>

Cases like this are a good argument against the death penalty.

One of the arguments used in support of the death penalty has been that an innocent person has never been executed. Had this guy been executed 10 years ago, presumably he would been an innocent person executed. Certainly makes one wonder about the 100's of people executed in a 'timely' fashion. Seems that the judicial system simply isn't strong enough to support the sanction of death on the basis of judgments that are at best 'provisional'.

[wabothai]

probably some overaged ignant cracker jack Alabama judge.

let him sit for a few years and pay for restitution.

[elgordo38]

I cannot imagine the mental anguish and torture of spending 30 years on death row knowing you are innocent of the crime! I hope the state of Alabama awards suitable restitution.

Not a chance they could not even come up with an apology.

[elgordo38]

In some states, they end up paying about 1 million (or much more) to the person incarcerated. I think I read of a guy getting 3 million.

The 150 people on the airplane, I read, get at most 150,000 USD. And they are trying to give them 50k for each life.

It's one weird world.....

I am 77 years old and it gets weirder by the day. Justice is falling apart around the planet. We are loosing all our rights unless we are rich of course.

[Basil B]

In some states, they end up paying about 1 million (or much more) to the person incarcerated. I think I read of a guy getting 3 million.

The 150 people on the airplane, I read, get at most 150,000 USD. And they are trying to give them 50k for each life.

It's one weird world.....

Birmingham, Alabama, he is black skinned, say no more...

About 11,000 days wrongly incarcerated...

For that give him $50 dollars a day =$550,000

For the mental cruelty of not knowing just how long he has left, give him $500 dollars a day = $5,500,000

Add the two together plus compound interest at 5%... =$13,990,000

Edited April 4, 2015 by Basil B

[how241]

I cannot imagine the mental anguish and torture of spending 30 years on death row knowing you are innocent of the crime! I hope the state of Alabama awards suitable restitution.

I hope he will sue and get a lot of money, not that it will bring back 30 years.

[Seastallion]

I read the headline and thought to myself, "Huh? Gitmo hasn't been operating for 30 years, has it?"

[Seastallion]

This is, why I think death sentences should be carried out immediately.

This guy got a roof over the head and 3 meals per day for 30(!) years on tax payers money. The compensation will be paid from the same coffers. How stupid is that?

You've been in Thailand too long and contracted the irrational mindset off some of them.

[samran]

This is, why I think death sentences should be carried out immediately.

This guy got a roof over the head and 3 meals per day for 30(!) years on tax payers money. The compensation will be paid from the same coffers. How stupid is that?

Hey, why not do away trails and those expensive lawyers? Just get the coppers to shoot them on arrest?

[bendejo]

One of the arguments used in support of the death penalty has been that an innocent person has never been executed.

[...]

And of course there is no way that they could be mistaken is saying that.

[trogers]

In some states, they end up paying about 1 million (or much more) to the person incarcerated. I think I read of a guy getting 3 million.

The 150 people on the airplane, I read, get at most 150,000 USD. And they are trying to give them 50k for each life.

It's one weird world.....

And the woman who puts her poodle in the micro wave or the woman that spills MacD coffee in her lap get 5M+ each

Why do you think over 2/3 of people in the US have lost faith in the US justice system. To access adequate justice, you need much $$$

Edited April 4, 2015 by trogers

[NickJ]

Funny...so many posters want him to be compensated and how it was such a horrific thing to have an innocent man wrongly convicted.

Yet......so many of us would just as soon allow third world countries to be allowed to carry out executions......often times when its proven there third world judisiaries are third class as well....It seems to me that there are few coutries that can execute with absolute impunity....Sure some people should be executed.......but this argument, when it comes to certain cases all aspects must be considered........yes....America has racial considerations.....and Yes.....if you caan simply pay Indonesia will let you off.

about the only impartial state is Singapore.

so until the Singoporean criterium can be met.....I. would say more money need to be put into Dna tests.....and for a country as corupt as Indonesia......jeez...They should be allowed to even issue a parking ticket much less a death sentance.

[FritsSikkink]

The judicial system in the USA is a joke.

[cookee68]

if you are a nobody in life this happens a lot, if you are a somebody, this is rare

[GentlemanJim]

This is, why I think death sentences should be carried out immediately.

This guy got a roof over the head and 3 meals per day for 30(!) years on tax payers money. The compensation will be paid from the same coffers. How stupid is that?

I think more

like "how stuipd is your post"

[Anthony5]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Glad he wasn't executed! alt=bah.gif>

Cases like this are a good argument against the death penalty.

One of the arguments used in support of the death penalty has been that an innocent person has never been executed. Had this guy been executed 10 years ago, presumably he would been an innocent person executed. Certainly makes one wonder about the 100's of people executed in a 'timely' fashion. Seems that the judicial system simply isn't strong enough to support the sanction of death on the basis of judgments that are at best 'provisional'.

You should read up a bit on your claim that no innocent people have been executed. There are plenty and this are just a few.

http://camerontoddwillingham.com/

http://listverse.com/2010/01/12/10-convicts-presumed-innocent-after-execution/

http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/05/yes-america-we-have-executed-an-innocent-man/257106/

Edited April 4, 2015 by Anthony5

[NeverSure]

I cannot imagine the mental anguish and torture of spending 30 years on death row knowing you are innocent of the crime! I hope the state of Alabama awards suitable restitution.

I hope he will sue and get a lot of money, not that it will bring back 30 years.

He will get a ton of money and he doesn't need any money himself to get it. There is so much money here that a really good law firm will take this case on a contingency - for part of any award rather than the normal hourly fee. The law firm will front any costs such as court costs, expert witness fees - everything. Because they have a financial interest in the outcome they will do a fine job and go for the throat.

The award is collectible because the defendants have deep pockets. The defendants appear to be the county in Alabama whose employees were the prosecutors. The state will also be sued because it has jurisdiction over the county in that it's a state court in that county. Also it's likely that the state crime lab did some of the initial work which convicted him. Few counties have a lab like that to do ballistics tests and certainly not 30 years ago.

Because the behavior of the state and county was callous and outrageous, a jury is going to be outraged. That jury will be at least 1/2 black and will be ordinary citizens of the state. The trial will probably be moved out of the county to avoid any conflict.

If there is a hint of racial bias in this case it's a federal offense and the feds will drop the hammer too. It could wind up being tried in federal court if there are both state and federal complaints against the defendants.

This is going to be one of the biggest monetary awards we've ever seen because the evidence was right there for at least 15 years and the defendants refused to act on it. The award will be trebled by the court due to the nature of the offense. The jury won't be told that in advance. I don't see less than $30 million and it could be a lot more.

Cheers