Back in 1978, Lawrence McKinney was convicted in a Memphis, TN court of rape and burglary. He was sentenced to 115 years in prison for these crimes. The only problem with this conviction? Lawrence was innocent. Unfortunately, it took more than 31 years before DNA evidence would exonerate McKinney. He was released from prison in 2009.
As if that’s not bad enough, the state of Tennessee gave McKinney just $75 for the big screw-up. $75! That’s roughly $2.50 a YEAR for the 30+ years he was wrongly imprisoned. Under Tennessee law, McKinney is eligible for roughly $1 million in compensation, but his request has been denied twice by the parole board. They’re still not convinced that he’s not guilty, therefore, they’re not willing to pay up just yet.
McKinney’s case has now been appealed to Governor Bill Haslam, who could make a decision at any time. If he truly is innocent, hopefully he gets much, MUCH more than the $1 million!
