In the United States, a man was unjustly deprived of his freedom for most of his life. Aged 71, he was declared innocent Tuesday in the state of Oklahoma after spending nearly 50 years behind bars for a murder he did not commit.
Glynn Simmons, an African-American, even became the person who spent the longest time imprisoned in the history of the country before being exonerated, according to the American National Registry of Exonerations.
A conviction based on simple testimony
Along with another man, Don Roberts, he was sentenced to death in 1975 for the murder of a 30-year-old liquor store clerk during a burglary in Edmond, a town in the state of ‘Oklahoma. Their sentence was later commuted to life in prison.
The conviction of the two men was decided on the basis of the simple testimony of a customer of the store, a teenager, who was shot in the head during the burglary but who survived. She claimed to have recognized them during the identification session, but a subsequent investigation called her allegations into question. During the trial, both men claimed they were not in Oklahoma on the day of the murder.
Justice must be “accountable”
Glynn Simmons was released in July after 48 years, one month and 18 days in prison, and was found innocent Tuesday by an Oklahoma court that overturned his conviction. “This is a day we have been waiting for for a long, long time,” he said. “We can say that justice has been served today, finally. » The other man convicted in the case, Don Roberts, was released from prison in 2008.
Glynn Simmons is now eligible for compensation. “What has been done has been done, but there must be accountability,” he said.