Post by Anja on Jun 10, 2006 4:21:17 GMT -5
Attorney for ex-death row inmate seeks $2 million from state
In Miami, the attorney for a former Florida death row inmate freed from
prison in 1989 after a new investigation showed he was wrongly convicted
of killing his 7 children is seeking $2 million compensation from the
state for his 2 decades behind bars.
Attorney Ellis Rubin said Friday he is seeking a sponsor for a special
relief bill in next year's state Legislature for James Richardson, 70, who
is now in ill health and living with friends in the Midwest.
"A terrible injustice must be corrected," Rubin said.
Richardson, a migrant fruit picker, was convicted of poisoning his seven
children in 1967 by placing insecticide in their food. His death sentence
was among 131 overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1972, and he was
resentenced to 25 years at hard labor. He served almost 22 years.
Richardson was exonerated in 1989 by Gov. Bob Martinez after an
investigation by Janet Reno, then chief prosecutor in Dade County and
later U.S. attorney general. A babysitter who was with the children when
they died confessed to the crime.
Lawmakers last year approved a $2 million payment for Wilton Dedge, who
spent 22 years in prison for a rape that DNA evidence later proved he did
not commit.
(source: Associated Press)
In Miami, the attorney for a former Florida death row inmate freed from
prison in 1989 after a new investigation showed he was wrongly convicted
of killing his 7 children is seeking $2 million compensation from the
state for his 2 decades behind bars.
Attorney Ellis Rubin said Friday he is seeking a sponsor for a special
relief bill in next year's state Legislature for James Richardson, 70, who
is now in ill health and living with friends in the Midwest.
"A terrible injustice must be corrected," Rubin said.
Richardson, a migrant fruit picker, was convicted of poisoning his seven
children in 1967 by placing insecticide in their food. His death sentence
was among 131 overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1972, and he was
resentenced to 25 years at hard labor. He served almost 22 years.
Richardson was exonerated in 1989 by Gov. Bob Martinez after an
investigation by Janet Reno, then chief prosecutor in Dade County and
later U.S. attorney general. A babysitter who was with the children when
they died confessed to the crime.
Lawmakers last year approved a $2 million payment for Wilton Dedge, who
spent 22 years in prison for a rape that DNA evidence later proved he did
not commit.
(source: Associated Press)