Justice
security/ Material evidence insecurity led to wrongful conviction
A man who has spent almost 37 years in a North
Carolina prison, serving a lifelong term for a crime he didn't commit, was
exonerated and released on Friday.
"Joseph Sledge, who was wrongfully convicted
in 1978, said he feels wonderful about his freedom. He is now
70-years old," CNN reported.
The man, wrongfully charged with the murder
of Josephine Davis and her daughter Aileen Davis in 1976, had
repeatedly appealed for reconsideration of his case, insisting he was
not guilty of the crime. However, his pleas remained unnoticed.
Eventually, the North Carolina Innocence Inquiry Commission launched an
investigation in Sledge's case.
Sledge's attorney, Christine Mumma, revealed that
crucial DNA evidence had been lost for several years, misplaced
by court clerks. Fortunately, the missing envelope containing hair,
allegedly belonging to a killer, was accidentally found on a high
shelf of a vault.
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