A judge ruled last month Sandra Hemme must be freed or retried for the 1980 murder within 30 days, but the Missouri Attorney General fought to keep her imprisoned.

A woman whose murder conviction was overturned after she served 43 years in prison  was released Friday, after Missouri’s attorney general fought for more than a month to keep her behind bars.

Sandra Hemme, 63, left prison Friday in Chillicothe, hours after a judge threatened to hold the attorney general’s office in contempt if they continued to fight against her release. She reunited with her family at a nearby park, where she hugged her daughter and granddaughter. Her sister, Joyce Ann Kays, was all grins.

The judge originally ruled on June 14 that Hemme’s attorneys had established “clear and convincing evidence” of “actual innocence” and overturned the conviction. But Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey fought her release in the courts.

  • BlackLaZoR
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    4 months ago

    You don’t. Where are you going to work? What can you put on your CV? What work experience do you have? On top of that your ability to learn is a far cry of what you had in your 20s. If you have no family who’ll take care of you, your future is utterly fucked. You’re destined to live in poverty until the end of your life.

    • Trailblazing Braille Taser
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      84 months ago

      On the other hand you might have a pretty good lawsuit against the state. Some states (all?) have laws defining maximum damages, so it might not be an amazing payout.