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Two men have been
awarded more than US$1.6 million in compensation for their wrongful convictions
of murder and death sentences in 1975, and decades spent in prison.
The death sentences for
the murder of Cleveland businessman Harry Franks were handed down in 1975 for
three people: Wiley Bridgeman, Kwame Ajamu and Ricky Jackson. The sentences
were later commuted to life in jail.
The case was destroyed
when the key witness, who was 13 years old in 1975, recanted on his testimony,
AP reported.
Ajamu – who was called
Ronnie Bridgeman in 1975 – was released in 2003 after 27 years in prison. Wiley
Bridgeman and Jackson were freed in November 2014 after nearly four decades
behind bars.
As a compensation for
wrongful imprisonment, the Ohio Court of Claims ordered to give US$1.6 million
to Wiley Bridgeman, now 60, and Kwame Ajamu, 57.
The sum includes
damages: about US$969,000 for Bridgeman and US$647,000 for Ajamu, according to
the court.
The sums also include
compensation for years of lost salaries, the men’s attorneys Terry Gilbert and
David Mills said, adding up to about US$51,000 for each year spent behind bars
and without work.
Gilbert said that no
money can bring back the decades in prison, and the men deserve more, but
added: “The state has limits on what they pay.”
He added: "But obviously they are grateful to
have some resources to start their lives again.”
Last month, Ricky
Jackson, now 58, was awarded over US$1 million in compensation.
Dan Tierney, a spokesman
for Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine, said the ruling is to be reviewed
Monday.
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