Michigan: Wrongful conviction ordeal ends

Court grants Belleville man damages for five years he spent in prison -- spent because of another case of suppressed evidence

A nearly nine-year ordeal ended for 28-year-old Nate Lewis this week when an Ohio court approved a $662,000 settlement for a wrongful rape conviction that sent him to prison for five years. It was a bittersweet victory for the Belleville man who still dreams of playing professional football, a goal he was chasing when he started at the University of Akron in Ohio in 1996. He was convicted in 1997 of raping a fellow student in her dorm room just two months after he arrived on campus. "It's not really what I wanted, but it's better than nothing,'' Lewis said this morning. "You can't put a price on the years I lost.''

Lewis was released from prison in 2002 after a federal appellate court ruled that a judge's decision to exclude passages from his accuser's diary denied him a fair trial. In the diary, the woman wrote that she snapped and blamed Lewis because she was sick of men taking advantage of her. Lewis always maintained the sex was consensual and turned down plea bargains that would have greatly reduced his time in prison. Prosecutors did not pursue a second trial after the conviction was overturned.

The settlement approved Tuesday by the Ohio Court of Claims pays Lewis $412,000, plus $250,000 for lawyers' fees. The payout includes $40,000 annually for lost wages.

Lewis, who works for a car rental company, continues playing semi-pro football for the Southern Michigan Storm, which has an upcoming playoff game in Dayton, Ohio. He said he plans to save the money and is hopeful his football dreams will soon become a reality. The running back - who was recruited from Belleville High to Akron to play football - participated in a skills tests in Indianapolis over the summer. "We'll see what happens,'' Lewis said. "Something has to crack sooner or later for me.'' Lewis said he's always tried to look toward the future since his prison release. "It's over for me now,'' he said. "Thank God.''

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