As of: March 6, 2024, 5:26 p.m
By: Moritz Bletzinger
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Ronald Gregory Johnson is beaming from ear to ear: He was released after 34 years and was innocently imprisoned.
© Phillips Black
In 1990, Ronald Johnson was convicted of murder - without evidence.
After more than three decades, the file has now been dropped.
The now 61-year-old is free.
Philadelphia – Ronald Gregory Johnson stands behind a thick window in a blue prison shirt.
There's a big smile on his face and happily narrowed eyes.
Johnson has good reason to be happy: he is free.
After 34 years in prison: Ronald Gregory Johnson is released - false statements put him behind bars
“For the last 34 years he has been incarcerated for a crime he did not commit,” explains his nephew James R. Jones.
In 1990, Johnson was convicted of murder.
There was no DNA, fingerprints or other forensic evidence, writes the nonprofit law firm
Phillips Schwarz
.
False statements from two witnesses put Johnson behind bars, and the police and prosecutors are said to have hidden a wealth of evidence against the witnesses.
Together with the family, the law firm fought for Johnson.
And when the lawyers were finally allowed to view the files, it was clear: Johnson is innocent.
On March 4, 2024, he was allowed to leave the Phoenix Correctional Facility in Philadelphia (USA).
Glynn Simmons once had to endure even longer: he was in prison for 48 years - almost half a century - because of a false murder charge.
Innocently in prison for over three decades.
A story that even affects lawyers.
“Seeing Mr. Johnson and his family cry as the judge banged the gavel and ordered his release was a beautiful, profound moment,” said defense attorney Stephen Lazar.
Innocent in prison: Johnson missed the deaths of his mother, his brother and the birth of his granddaughter
And what does Johnson do with his regained freedom?
The first thing he wants to do is visit the grave of his mother, who died while he was in prison.
“She always believed in my innocence, I want to thank her,” Johnson said.
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It's hard to imagine what the now 61-year-old has missed in over 30 years.
His nephew lists: “The death of his mother, his brother, his son’s graduation and my graduation.
The birth of his granddaughter and so many other family moments.”
Judicial scandals don't just happen in the USA: In Bavaria, Manfred Genditzki was innocently imprisoned for 13 years, and the Free State then paid 368,700 euros in compensation.