A Philadelphia man, Shaurn Thomas has finally been released from prison after serving 24 years for a murder he did not commit. He has since been exonerated for the accused crime.
Thomas was released this past Tuesday from a prison in Frackville after a hearing that allowed him to be exonerated for the murder conviction. He was convicted of his involvement in the 1990 killing of a businessman who was shot while bringing $25,000 to a local check-cashing spot.
The 43-year-old tells CBS News that he finally got a chance to use a cellphone for the first time and intended on eating the Ultimate Feast at Red Lobster as his first meal.
Thomas, who was 16 years old when arrested says he was at a youth studies center when the murder happened that day. An eyewitness’s testimony linked him to the crime scene, but it was eventually recanted. He was sentenced to life in 1993.
Marissa Bluestine, the executive director of the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, tells CBS Philly that Thomas was an innocent man who has been working hard for years to prove it.
"This is a man who has not only been proclaiming his innocence but has been doing everything he can to prove it," said Bluestine. "This is one of those cases that should not have gone to trial, but unfortunately it did."
CBS Philly reports “Thomas says he doesn't hold a grudge and never lost faith he would be freed.”
His fiancée, Stephonia Long tells CBS that the family he's happy that the officially innocent man has finally been freed.
"Everyone is happy, very, very happy," Long said. "The whole time he has been very positive because he believed in his innocence."
Source: cbsnews.com
