Photos: Video Screenshots\ Elijah Craig II\Innocence Project
Nearly five decades after he was wrongfully convicted, Leonard Mack was exonerated Tuesday — on his birthday — in White Plains, NY.
New DNA testing of crime scene evidence found in a post-conviction investigation by the Innocence Project and the Westchester County District Attorney’s Conviction Review Unit proved Leonard did not commit the crime. Leonard’s wrongful conviction is the longest to be overturned based on new DNA evidence known to the Innocence Project. The DNA profile developed from the evidence was uploaded to the state and local DNA database and yielded a hit. The actual assailant identified by this search has since confessed to the crime.
“I want to first thank God for this day. Next, I want to thank the Innocence Project. Today has been a long time coming. I lost seven-and-a-half years of my life in prison for a crime I did not commit and I have lived with this injustice hanging over my head for almost 50 years. It changed the course of my life — everything from where I lived to my relationship with my family. I never lost hope that one day that I would be proven innocent. Now the truth has come to light and I can finally breathe. I am finally free,” said Leonard after finally being exonerated.
Please take a moment to read more about Leonard’s story and share the news of his long-awaited exoneration with your friends and family on social media.
And if you’d like to support Leonard as he rebuilds his life after wrongful conviction, please consider donating to his personal fundraiser today.
