Ronnie Long, now 68, has received a historic $25M (approx. KSH. 3.98B) settlement after spending 44 years of his life wrongly imprisoned in North Carolina for the rape of a white woman, a crime a court has now confirmed he never committed.
Long, a black, was living in Concord when he was found guilty of rape and burglary by an all-white jury in 1976.
But it was not until August 2020 that a federal appeals court ordered a new hearing for Mr. Long, in his effort to obtain relief. Shortly after, his conviction was vacated.
Long was released from prison the same year and received a full pardon of innocence by Gov. Roy Cooper. Long then sued the state of North Carolina and the city of Concord in 2021.
The $25M award, of which the local government will pay $22M, also came with a written apology from the city of Concord for its role in Long’s imprisonment.
