2023-12-21 01:08:42
A 71-year-old man was declared innocent on Tuesday in the US state of Oklahoma following spending nearly 50 years behind bars for a murder he did not commit.
Glynn Simmons, an African-American, became the longest-serving person in US history before being exonerated, according to the US National Registry of Exonerations.
Along with another man, Don Roberts, he was sentenced to death in 1975 for the murder of a 30-year-old liquor store clerk during a burglary in Edmond, a town in the state of ‘Oklahoma.
Their sentence was later commuted to life in prison.
The conviction of the two men was decided on the basis of the simple testimony of a customer of the store, a teenager, who was shot in the head during the burglary, but who survived.
The teenager claimed to have recognized them during the identification session, but a subsequent investigation called her allegations into question.
During the trial, both men claimed they were not in Oklahoma on the day of the murder.
Glynn Simmons was released in July following 48 years, one month and 18 days in prison, and was found innocent Tuesday by an Oklahoma court that overturned his conviction.
“This is a day that we have been waiting for for a long, long time,” Mr. Simmons told reporters. “We can say that justice has been served today, finally.”
The other man convicted in the case, Don Roberts, was released from prison in 2008, according to the U.S. National Registry of Exonerations.
Glynn Simmons is now eligible for compensation. “What has been done has been done, but there must be accountability,” he said.
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