2 Black men wrongfully sent to death row awarded $75M in damages
Does a $75m settlement make up for 30 years in prison?
A historic $75m settlement awarded to two North Carolina brothers incarcerated for more than three decades over a crime they did not commit has brought the issue of wrongful convictions back into the limelight.
Henry McCollum and his half-brother Leon Brown were twice convicted for the 1983 rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl. In 2014, the emergence of new DNA evidence led to their exoneration and full pardons the following year.
On Friday, they received $31m in damages each - $1m for every year spent in prison - and $13m in punitive damages. The payout represents the largest combined settlement in a wrongful conviction case in US history, according to the brothers' lawyers.
Does a $75m settlement make up for 30 years in prison?
A historic $75m settlement awarded to two North Carolina brothers incarcerated for more than three decades over a crime they did not commit has brought the issue of wrongful convictions back into the limelight.
Henry McCollum and his half-brother Leon Brown were twice convicted for the 1983 rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl. In 2014, the emergence of new DNA evidence led to their exoneration and full pardons the following year.
On Friday, they received $31m in damages each - $1m for every year spent in prison - and $13m in punitive damages. The payout represents the largest combined settlement in a wrongful conviction case in US history, according to the brothers' lawyers.
