The Missouri Supreme Court has halted an agreement that would have saved death row inmate Marcellus Williams from execution. Williams, who was convicted for the 1998 murder of Lisha Gayle, now faces a scheduled execution on Sept 24, 2024. The court’s decision came just hours after a St. Louis County judge approved a plea deal…
A 71-year-old man who spent nearly five decades in prison for a murder he did not commit has been awarded $7.15 million in a settlement after it was revealed that police falsified witness statements to secure his conviction. Glynn Ray Simmons, the longest-serving inmate in U.S. history to be exonerated, was wrongfully imprisoned for 48…
Sandra Hemme, a Missouri inmate wrongfully convicted of murder, was released from prison on Friday after a protracted legal battle with the state’s attorney general. Hemme’s release marks the end of a 43-year ordeal, stemming from a conviction based on withheld exculpatory evidence. Legal Battle for Release The process leading to Hemme’s release involved a…
A Cleveland man, Isaiah Andrews’ life was marked by a wrongful conviction that saw him spend 45 years behind bars for a crime he always insisted he did not commit. Although he passed away at the age of 83 in 2022, his story leaves a legacy of resilience and unwavering determination. Andrews’ wrongful conviction stemmed…
Ryan Matthews, once wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death for a murder he did not commit, has defied the odds to earn his Master’s degree in business analytics from Texas Woman’s University. His journey from death row to academic achievement serves as a testament to resilience and the pursuit of justice! Matthews’ ordeal began in…
Darien Harris, a Chicago man whose murder conviction was overturned after serving 12 years in prison, has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the city and the police department. The lawsuit comes after a Cook County judge vacated Harris’s conviction upon discovering that a key witness, who testified against him, was legally blind. Harris…
The family of Alexander McClay Williams, the youngest person ever executed in Pennsylvania, is suing Delaware County for his wrongful conviction and execution in 1931. Williams, a 16-year-old Black teenager, was exonerated by the governor in 2022. Williams was convicted of the October 1930 murder of Vida Robare, a white woman found stabbed 47 times…
Three former Philadelphia police detectives, now in their 70s, are facing trial after being accused of lying under oath during the 2016 retrial of Anthony Wright, who was exonerated of a 1991 rape and murder. The case marks a rare instance of law enforcement officials facing criminal charges for alleged misconduct leading to wrongful convictions.…
In the inaugural installment of “Cases in Brief” two years ago, Harvard Law Professor Dehlia Umunna delves into the landmark case Powell v. Alabama (1932), famously known as the “Scottsboro Boys” case. This pivotal case marked the U.S. Supreme Court’s seminal ruling, establishing defendants’ rights to adequate legal representation in capital cases under the 14th…