A man who was wrongly convicted of triple murder in Missouri is able to spend the holiday season with his family.
He will not receive any form of compensation from the state despite being a victim. The goal of the Midwest Innocence Project's GoFundMe campaign was $7,500, but it has far surpassed that.
A state judge exonerating Kevin Strickland, who had been convicted of murder in 1979 was on the show. Evidence that was previously ignored was brought forward by a Jackson County prosecutor and was key to gaining Strickland's new freedom.
Kevin spoke to reporters after his release. A screen grab from Kansascity.com.
Jean Peters Baker, the state's attorney, said that they were extremely pleased and grateful. This brings justice to a man who has suffered so much as a result of this wrongful conviction.
He spoke to a group of reporters as he left the Western Missouri Correctional Center.
I am not angry. It is a lot. I think I have created some emotions that you don't know about. There was joy, sorrow, and fear. I'm trying to figure out how to put them together.
He wants to prevent this from happening to someone else by working in criminal justice reform.
James Welsh, the presiding judge, said that he was presented with clear and convincing evidence that undermined the judgement of conviction.
The community has rallied around Strickland to help him return to normal as he begins to reintegrate into society. A new $1.2 million goal has been reached, but it is $100,000 short of the $1 million mark. Many people contributed money.
The release after so many years of incarceration without compensation is wrong on so many levels, said a donor. This practice only supports a bad practice by prosecutors. Accountability is needed for decisions made even in error. Let's change the laws.
I can't imagine 43 years taken away from you for being a millionaire.
There was no physical evidence linking him to the murders. He was sent away for nearly two-thirds of his life because of the testimony of one woman.
His brothers said this has been a nightmare for 43 years. Strickland said, "I will never forget that time, that month." My birthday is in April. He said that he had just turned 16 and that his brother would be taken away for life. He was not a man. He will probably tell you he was, but he was a boy. He was young.
He said that his brother was locked up before he was sentenced.
Thornton said that he wasn't able to see his daughter and son. He didn't get to see any of my children. He didn't have any of the simple things that we take for granted. He has missed out on 43 years of advancement.
He missed out on seeing his mother before she died, the most painful thing he missed out on. Thornton was old.
She was a fighter, but right now she is crying, she is smiling at him, and it is not supposed to be that way. She held on for so long to see her son come home and she couldn't make it.
Missouri has one of the strictest compensation laws in the nation, according to State Rep. Richard Brown.
According to Bakersfield.com, the state's compensation law only allocates payments to prisoners who prove their innocence through a specific statute. The state will not give him any help in getting counseling or therapy for the trauma he experienced while in prison. He won't be eligible to receive social services like publicly funded health care.
The prosecutor that worked to free Strickland thinks that Missouri should expand its compensation law.
The public and nonprofits are raising money for him.
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