Lamar Johnson has always maintained that he’s innocent and after almost 30 years in prison for a murder two others have since confessed to, a hearing process has begun to decide if his conviction should be overruled.
The hearing started on Monday in Missouri, with St Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner supporting his request that his conviction be vacated, CBS News reported.
The Missouri attorney general’s office still claims that Johnson was convicted correctly following the killing of Marcus Boyd, 25, in 1994. The office argues that Johnson should stay behind bars.
The St Louis Circuit Court hearing is expected to go on for five days. Johnson told KMOV that he’s optimistic about the hearing.
“I believe in God. I believe that he had a purpose for me other than to spend the rest of my life in prison. ... I think you can lie, you can deny, you can hide the truth, but eventually it’s going to find a way. ... I’m comforted in that,” he said.
He added that he thinks any impartial judge would see that he’s innocent. In 1995, he was sentenced to life in prison for allegedly shooting Mr Boyd over a drug debt of $40.
Phil Campbell, another suspect, pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and received seven years in prison.
Johnson claimed he was with girlfriend during murder
Johnson said he was with his girlfriend, miles from the scene of the crime, at the time of the murder. Years after his conviction, the only witness for the prosecution withdrew his testimony identifying Johnson and Campbell as those who shot Mr Boyd. Two other men later confessed to the crime and said that Johnson wasn’t a part of the killing.
Ms Gardner started an investigation alongside the Midwest Innocence Project, unearthing prosecutorial misconduct, faked police reports and perjury – allegations that have been denied by the former prosecutor and detective who worked on the case.
Case dragged into political battle
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt requested last week that the court sanction Ms Gardner after he accused her of hiding evidence.
Mr Schmitt said Ms Gardner’s office hadn’t told his office about gunshot residue found on a jacket in Johnson’s car following his arrest. Mr Schmitt said the evidence was concealed “because it tends to prove that Johnson is guilty”.
Ms Gardner is a Democrat and Mr Schmitt is a Republican. She responded to his claim by accusing him of grandstanding and said that the evidence mishap had been caused by a missed email, adding that the episode was irrelevant as the jacket wasn’t used in the killing. Johnson told KMOV the jacket doesn’t belong to him.
New state law makes it easier to get new hearings
Johnson’s insistence that he’s innocent led to a state law being put in place last year that simplifies the process for prosecutors to get new hearings in cases where fresh evidence appears regarding a faulty conviction.
The law led to another convicted man, Kevin Strickland, getting his freedom back after a prosecutor informed a court that evidence against him had been retracted or proven inaccurate. He spent more than four decades in prison for a triple murder in Kansas City before he was freed.
Speaking to KMOV, Johnson became emotional when recalling the moment more than ten years ago when an investigator agreed to take on his case. The investigator said they would first attempt to prove Johnson guilty because if they were unable to do so, they would be able to prove his innocense.
“I always get emotional when I talk about this. Because I knew that if a person went in like that. Once they were convinced that they would fight for me,” he said.
Conviction based on criticized witness testimony
Johnson’s conviction was based on witness testimony despite the killer wearing a ski mask in the dark at the time of the shooting. His attorneys have argued that a witness was paid $4,000 for his testimony and that he recently revealed that he came under pressure from police and prosecutors, KMOV reported.
“I think a lot of politics was involved in this case, a lot of pushback. I don’t think it was even about me. I think it’s about bigger things. But it still doesn’t change the fact that I’m affected by it. You know?” Johnson told KMOV.
“This is just a moment I’ve always been waiting for. And I’ve been fighting for over 28 years. And so, I’m really ready to be able to present this case, present the evidence, and I expect it to turn out right,” he added.
