The man who spent 44 years in prison for a crime he did not commit: “He lost everything”

Ronnie long is an African American from North Carolina What happened 44 years in prison, found guilty of a violation he did not commit. After an appeals court proved his innocence, albeit belatedly, the state governor signed a decree to release him.

This happened in December of last year, but now the man is back in the news as he considers the amount of compensation he received for his years in prison –750,000 USD– This seems insufficient and requires greater compensation.

“He was in a cell when his parents died, when his son grew up and graduated. He lost everything during those 44 years, and he certainly deserves more than he received, ”he told her. Jamie Lau, Long’s lawyer on CNN signal from the United States.

Man, what released at the end of 2020 of the correctional institution Albermale, had been sentenced in 1976 to life imprisonment for the rape of a white woman.

The sentencing jury was made up entirely of white members, who determined that Long, then 20 years old and a resident of the city of Concorde, had abused and stolen the woman, widow of an executive of the local textile company Cannon Mills.

After maintaining his innocence and pursuing a lifetime of rejected appeals and petitions, the convict was released. It was when, just in September of last year, the courts determined that Long he had been wrongly convicted.

After his conviction, “a trickle of post-trial revelations uncovered a disturbing and surprising pattern of deliberate suppression of evidence by the police,” the court judge wrote. United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, Stephanie Thacker, according to what is indicated in the aforementioned signal.

Among the errors of the trial which determined the guilt of Long The point is that around 40 fingerprints were found at the crime scene, and none were from the accused. Worst of all, these samples were withheld from the defense for many years, along with other evidence that exonerated the accused.

“Everything that happened to put me behind bars it was intentional How can you say my life is only worth $ 750,000? There should never be a limit in a person’s life, ”said the own Long at CNN.

According to what is established by the law of the state of North Carolina, that corresponds to Long, who is 65 today, is paying $ 50,000 for every year spent in prison to be innocent. But the rule also establishes that this sum has a limit, which is the one given to the falsely convicted person: $ 750,000.

Now both Long Like their lawyer, they are trying to have this law revised, because the amount granted to a person who has been deprived of his liberty for so many years without deserving it in any way seems insufficient.

“At least two men have been exonerated after more than 44 years of incarceration, which highlights the inadequacy of the compensation status and this limit,” said the lawyer for Long.

Beyond the meager financial compensation for a life of suffering, the recently released Concord man said since his release from prison his life has been a transition, Y he is happy to have loving people around him help you get to where you want to go.

The man bought one of his dream cars, the first car he owned in 50 years, a Cadillac, and he and his wife are planning to buy a new house.

“Now I am alive, I am back among the living. I am a living and living testimony of a second chance“, He said Long.

THE NATION