Wrongly jailed Connecticut black gets $5 million

This wraps up a case previously covered on this blog on July 10 last year

A US man jailed for 18 years for a rape he did not commit was paid $US5 million ($A6.07 million) in compensation by the state of Connecticut. James Tillman, now 45, was arrested in 1988 and sentenced to 45 years in prison a year later. He was exonerated in 2006 and released after a DNA test proved his innocence.

"No amount of money we give Mr Tillman will erase this miscarriage of justice," Connecticut House of Representatives Speaker James Amann, a Democrat, said before lawmakers voted unanimously to give him $5 million. "We can, however, contribute to his healing, and help Mr Tillman move on with his life," Amann said.

The case had racial overtones. The victim, who is white, identified Tillman, who is black, from a police line-up. Police never caught the real rapist.

Connecticut Governor Jodi Rell, a Republican, has publicly apologised to Tillman on behalf of the state but previously offered him a much smaller $500,000 payment. She said she supported the legislature's $5 million figure. In exchange for the settlement, Tillman agreed not to sue the state and police for other claims, including medical malpractice over botched prison surgery that permanently damaged his right leg. The lump-sum payment will not be taxed by the state but is subject to federal income taxes.

Tillman, who was 26 when convicted, lives with his mother and works as an office assistant. He often speaks to school groups about his plight and expressed gratitude to lawmakers who supported his cause. His DNA test in 2006 was granted after lawyers from the Innocence Project, a New York-based legal clinic, got involved on his behalf, working with state authorities.

Report here



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