An innocent woman is released from US prison after 43 years
No woman sat in a US prison for as long as she did: Sandra Hemme spent over forty years in prison for a supposed murder. In June, a judge overturned the verdict. However, a prosecutor tried to prevent her release.
In the USA, a woman falsely convicted of murder was released from prison after 43 years. Following an energetic intervention from Judge Ryan Horsman, the 64-year-old Sandra Hemme left the prison in Chillicothe, Missouri, on a Friday local time. There, she embraced her sister, daughter, and granddaughter in a nearby park. According to the Innocence Project, specializing in wrongful convictions, she was the longest wrongfully imprisoned woman in the USA.
Hemme was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of a library worker. In mid-June, Judge Horsman determined that her lawyers had presented clear and compelling evidence for her innocence and overturned the verdict. Hemme had been heavily sedated when investigators questioned her at a psychiatric clinic. Her confession was the only evidence and consisted of a series of one-word answers to suggestive questions. The woman was "the victim of obvious injustice."
Prosecutor Andrew Bailey filed an appeal. Although several courts ruled that Hemme should be released pending Bailey's appeal, the prosecutor objected and argued that she posed a threat to the public. He even demanded that she serve two additional sentences she had received during her imprisonment.
On a Friday, Judge Horsman lost his patience. If the acquitted woman was not released within hours, he threatened to charge Bailey with contempt of court, saying, "I recommend that you never do that." He also destroyed Bailey's office for insisting on keeping Hemme in prison despite the judge's order. "I advise against doing that," said Horsman. "It's wrong to call someone and tell them to disregard a court ruling."
Bailey's office initially declined to comment. Hemme's attorney, Sean O'Brien, commented that it seemed easy for the prosecution to convict the innocent, but difficult to release them.
The overturned verdict of Sandra Hemme's murder conviction highlighted a significant Miscarriage of Justice in the United States. Despite her release, the prosecutor, Andrew Bailey, continued to argue against it, claiming that Hemme posed a threat to the public. This case sparked international discussions on the importance of ensuring Justice in the processes of Murder and manslaughter trials, including in the state of Missouri. Many prisoners across the USA, including those serving time for similar crimes, were inspired by Hemme's fight for her freedom.
