A Kansas man who was recently released from prison after serving 23 years for a double homicide conviction that has been overturned, now faces the hard work of getting his life in order, and he will have to do it without much of a head start.
Lamonte McIntyre basically lost the most productive period of his life, as he was locked up from 17 to 41. The judge presiding over McIntyre's case found that the lead detective in the trial, Roger Golubski, the prosecuting attorney Terra Morehead, and the judge, J. Dexter Burdette, were complicit in misconduct. The case got thrown out and McIntyre was free to go home on Friday, October 13.
McIntyre will now set upon his life by first pursuing work as a barber. But while in many cases news of an innocent prisoner's release is followed by stories on how much they were awarded by the state for life-altering false rulings, such isn't the case in Kansas, where the government isn't required to give a guy like McIntyre anything. Kansas is one of 18 states that do not compensate in such cases, thus leaving McIntyre to make it on his own. There are contradictions to such a case that many in the legal field find frustrating.
“If he came out on probation or parole, the state would have to provide him services in finding housing, education, getting his I.D.,” says Midwest Innocence Project director Tricia Bushnell. “They don’t have to give him anything. And, in fact, they haven’t.” Bills were submitted in the Kansas legislature to compensate exonerees in 2016 and 2017 but both times the proposals died.
McIntyre may have no choice but to sue. He has the option of suing the state for violating his civil rights, and he may also sue each of the individuals who were found to have carried out misconduct. For now, his family has been raising money via a razoo.com campaign. McIntyre is approaching his goal of $5,000.
Source: YouTube
