Anthony Ray Hinton Awarded Honorary Doctorate Degree, Alabama Man Freed After Decades on Death Row, Freed Death Row Inmate: Humor Saved Me from Satan, 122 Commerce Street Montgomery, AL 36104 As it concerns Alabama, however, a representative from the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, Alabama said that Hinton has yet to receive an official apology or any restitution due him from the state of Alabama. So Ive got to forgive. All Rights Reserved, U.S. History, U.S. Government & Civics, Criminal Justice, Legal Studies. The police turned up one day while Hinton, then 29, was mowing his mother's lawn; they. [15] Writing for The Guardian, Tim Adams described the book as, "a story of forgiveness and struggle"[16] and concludes that, "his wonderful memoir recreates the ways he escaped from his cell in his head had tea with the Queen of England, married Halle Berry and how he shared that possibility with his fellow death row inmates. Hinton's case was taken up by the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, Alabama. 2. Jacobs was afraid to publish or write her tale, but Douglass was not, and her story was published in many variations. [10] The Court ruled that Hinton's original defense lawyer had provided "constitutionally deficient" ineffective assistance of counsel, and remanded his case to the Alabama state court for retrial. Mar 30, 2016 Updated Mar 31, 2016. This has nothing to do with luck. Write the Vision, Make It Plain, Run With It. Discover steps to bring you closer to Christ. However, the jury disregarded his testimony because of his poor eyesight and inability to use the microscope correctly. Number three, youre gonna have a white district attorney. As my good friend Bryan Stevenson says, the moral arc of the universe bends toward justice but justice needs help., How I got 30 years on death row for someone else's crime, 'I went to death row for 28 years through no fault of my own', Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. Yes, Im going to write and spread His love because I love Him and His people, and my heart is to live for Him. Anthony Ray Hinton spent 30 years in prison 28 on death row for a crime he didn't commit, and he has been busy since his 2015 exoneration. Send a prayer request now, or call 18007007000. Authorities arrested Hinton in 1985, after a string of robberies at restaurants in Birmingham. Alabama inmate Anthony Ray Hinton walked out of prison Friday as a free man after 30 years on death row. 24, 2019, 2:11 p.m. Anthony Ray Hinton, who spent nearly 30 years on Alabama's death row, was freed this morning after prosecutors told a judge they won't re-try him for the 1985 . Since then, Hinton has been able to forgive everyone responsible for his imprisonment, because thats how my mother raised me and because I have a God who forgives. We are thrilled that Mr. Hinton will finally be released because he has unnecessarily spent years on Alabamas death row when evidence of his innocence was clearly presented, said his lead attorney, Bryan Stevenson. "[17], On May 19, 2019, Hinton spoke at St. Bonaventure University's commencement exercises and was awarded an honorary Doctor of Human Letters degree. Im going to bring the best out of everybody that come in touch with me, says Ray. He also wrote a book about his time in prison called The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row, which has since been selected for . March 22, 20185:57 AM. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. Hinton declined to sign it. Anthony Ray Hinton. His book is a harrowing masterpiece 'Let sleeping dogs lie': Lynching memorial angers some Anthony Ray Hinton. It took almost a decade for Mr. Hinton and his lawyers to recruit a panel of experts, including a former F.B.I. The cop was right. The panel questioned the findings of the Alabama authorities, but the state remained steadfast. Gonna have a white D.A. Mr. Perhacss choice a man later described by a prosecutor as a one-eyed charlatan did little to help the defense, and Mr. Hinton was convicted and sentenced to death. by Anthony Ray Hinton with Lara Love Hardin The Sun Does Shine is a powerful examination of both our flawed justice system and of one man's personal resilience and faith. When Hinton was done eating, about half past six, he drove to the polling location where he would cast his first vote in a presidential election since he was released from Alabamas death row. Introductions: Anthony Ray Hinton May 2, 2019. Cases like Anthony Ray Hintons give the public pause about the death penalty, said Robert Dunham, the centers executive director. He has one message for everyone who will listen: Our system is broken, and its time to put a stop to the death penalty. We have a system that treats you better if youre rich and guilty than if youre poor and innocent, and his case proves it. A total of 54 men walked past Hinton's cell on their way to execution. The only evidence linking Hinton to the. Mr. Hinton hugs EJI lawyer Charlotte Morrison. In 2015, Hintons 30 years of unbroken prayers were answered and the nations highest court ruled unanimously in his favor. He organized a book club that was allowed to meet in the prison's law library. For your mom not to be here the day that you are released, to run into her arms and say, Im home, Mom isI try my best to be the son that she brought me up to be, says Ray. The 64-year-old, whose story was featured in the HBO documentary film True Justice, is one of thousands of formerly incarcerated Americans who are casting ballots amid a new movement to restore their reentry into society and a reckoning on criminal justice and racism in America. Mr. Hinton wrote: Because the so called Fair Justice Actnow pending before the state legislatureputs time restrictions on how long death row prisoners have to prove their innocence or a wrongful conviction, this legislation increases the risk of executing innocent people and makes our system even less fair. In 2018, Alabama residents who were previously convicted of felonies were able to register to vote under the Moral Turpitude Act of 2017. YouTube | 700 Club Interactive "There's five things they're going to convict you to," the officer told him. Rays mother, whod visited him almost every week since his incarceration, died in 2002. Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. The court was unable to affirm the forensic evidence of a gun, which was the only evidence in the first trial. This lesson is part of NewsHours Searching for Justice series on criminal justice reform. Ala. See her moment of surrender, and the miracle of life. Overview: The struggle to adapt to life after conviction is a major challenge, especially for those who were innocent of the crime that led to a prison sentence. CBN is a global ministry committed to preparing the nations of the world for the coming of Jesus Christ through mass media. CBN's ministry is made possible by the support of our CBN Partners. Death Row Exonoree Wednesday, April 12, 2023 8pm. $140 per post at $7/CPM. But that isnt what makes this a genuine spiritual experience: that comes from the nearly biblical capacity of the author to endure, to forgive, and finally to triumph. We vacate the lower court's judgment and remand the case . [5][7] The jury disregarded the testimony of Hinton's boss, who testified that he was at work during the time of the alleged crimes. We have a system that is compromised by racial bias, and his case proves it., Weve gotten into a culture, he said in a separate interview, where the pressure to convict and to achieve these outcomes is so great that owning up to mistakes is less frequent than youd like to imagine.. Despite Rays ironclad alibi for at least one of the robberies, and the lack of solid evidence, prosecutors pushed for a conviction. Police seized an old revolver belonging to Mr. Hinton's mother, and state firearm examiners said that was the gun used in all three crimes. Anthony Ray Hinton, an innocent man, spent 30 years on death row in Alabama because, he says, he was "black and poor." His name finally cleared, he now campaigns for justice -- which he says. I have never experienced anything like it.. In recent days leading up to the vote, Hinton had been thinking more about his grandparents and his parents, who he said werent allowed to vote because of voter suppression such as literacy tests, polls taxes and intimidation. The only potential evidence that proves Mr. Hinton committed the murders depends upon an absolute, conclusive determination that the bullets recovered from their bodies were in fact fired through the barrel of the firearm taken from the defendants home, prosecutors wrote in their court filing on Wednesday. Mr. Hinton, 58, argued for decades that Alabama officials including the judge who oversaw his trial and is now retired had made a series of compounding mistakes after three shootings in 1985 that left two men dead and another wounded. When Ray was arrested for crimes he didn't commit, he remembers telling the police officers that he didn't do it. Under the Fair Justice Act, I'd be dead. Mr. Hinton walked out of the Jefferson County Jail a free man. Anthony Ray Hinton (born June 1, 1956) is an American activist, writer, and author who was wrongly convicted of the 1985 murders of two fast food restaurant managers in Birmingham, Alabama. Mr. Hinton, 29 then, was indigent, and the Supreme Court said last year that the lawyer appointed to represent him, Sheldon C. Perhacs, had mistakenly believed he had only $1,000 to hire an expert witness for the proceedings. After a few years, the club grew as the news spread quickly in the prison that reading was a good escape. If you think there is no reason for another book about a grave miscarriage of American justice, think again. (What were the five reasons given by the white police officer that guaranteed Mr. Hintons supposed guilt?) In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence. Read this article and answer the following questions. [9], Hinton was sent to death row, where he was held in solitary confinement for nearly three decades. As she desperately prays for healing, hear the message she receives from God on todays A woman receives an answer to a prayer she never wanted to pray. #ElectionDay #Vote2020 pic.twitter.com/J2eFOWnheD. (You will need to make a copy of the document to edit it.). He said, Number three, youre gonna have a white prosecutor. But the book club is short-lived, after the prisoners who are left out of it convince the warden it is unfair to allow only some of them to become readers. Anthony Ray Hinton leaves the Jefferson County jail in Birmingham, Alabama in April 2015, after nearly 30 years on death row. Ray was arrested, convicted, imprisoned, and sentenced to death for a crime he didn't commit. [2] Hinton was sentenced to death and held on the state's death row for 28 years before his 2015 release. Get to know others seeking Gods guidance and wisdom for life. Police arrived at the house near Birmingham, Alabama, and arrested him for. [4] Hinton's book received extremely positive reviews. That paid for the experts who got it wrong. What are the mistakes in the case against Mr. Hinton? Committed Christian Anthony Ray Hinton doesn't use the word "hell" lightly; nevertheless, that's what three decades of solitary confinement in William C. Holman Correctional Facility in Alabama, was like, he says. Anthony, or Ray, still remembers the arresting officer's chilling words. Hinton (portrayed in the movie by O'Shea Jackson Jr.) was arrested and convicted in Alabama in 1985 for the murders of two fast food restaurant managerswho worked at different places, and who were killed months apart that year, NBC News reports. Alabama On Sunday, January 10, 60 Minutes aired an interview with Anthony Ray Hinton, who was exonerated on April 3, 2015 after spending nearly 30 years on Alabama 's death row. Rays mother, Buhlar, and his best friend, Lester Bailey, were crushed by the outcome. Our tax dollars that paid for the judge and the prosecutor that prosecuted him. Anthony Ray Hinton spent decades in jail for crimes he did not commit. Number two, a white is gonna say you shot him whether you shot him or not.. three, youre going to have a white prosecutor. We hired three of the nations best firearms experts, says Charlotte. Anthony Ray Hinton's wrongful conviction and time on death row is featured in the upcoming drama, Just Mercy. The film, starring Michael B. Jordan and Jamie Foxx, follows attorney Brian Stevenson as he fights for the wrongly imprisoned including Hinton. Having spent 30 years on. Have students write a personal response summarizing the video How do you feel after seeing Hintons struggle with the criminal justice system? He has received no compensation. Anthonys mother and best friend also were crushed by the outcome. Start your day together with God and the GOD TV team. I dont believe the God that I serve is gonna let me die for a crime He knows I didnt commit.. Hinton spent 28 years on death row for two robbery-murders in the Birmingham, Ala., area in the mid-1980s. 0. American activist, writer, and author (born 1956), List of wrongful convictions in the United States, "Anthony Ray Hinton Spent Almost 30 Years on Death Row. Anthony Ray Hinton was a man wrongfully convicted of a crime he did not commit back in the year 1985 and what happened was that two fast food restaurants in Birmingham Alabama were robbed and both Mangers were shot dead named Thomas Vason and John Davidson and on a later date of July 25th on the same year another restaurant was robbed in Bessemer Anthony Ray Hinton was convicted and sentenced to the most extreme penalty for a crime he did not do because of the color of his skin. And so it was not until Friday at 9:30 a.m., one day after a Circuit Court judge ordered his release, that Mr. Hinton exited the jail to hugs, tears and wails of Thank you, Lord!, The State of Alabama let me down tremendously, Mr. Hinton said in his first interview after his release. One of those people was Henry Hays, a KKK member on death row for lynching a Black teenager. Get more than a Sunday sermon. Convicted, he was sentenced to death and held in solitary confinement on Alabamas death row for 28 years, before being exonerated. Hinton hopes that will change, and his vote on Tuesday gave him hope that it will change soon. A year ago, almost to the day, I traveled to Montgomery, Alabama for the Equal Justice Initiative's unveiling of the Legacy Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration and The National Memorial for Peace and Justice.. Hi. I mean ONLY.. 07.31.17. The civil engineer testified that the ballistics test did not link the gun authorities found to either of the shootings. How have you felt the cost of life's unfairness? Four, youre gonna have a white judge. Hinton was assigned an incompetent lawyer who was paid $1,000 by the state and then proceeded to hire an incompetent ballistics expert who guaranteed his conviction on fake evidence. Hinton was 29 when was convicted and sentenced to die in the state's electric chair. One of the longest serving death row prisoners in Alabama history and among the longest serving condemned prisoners to be freed after presenting evidence of innocence, Mr. Hinton was the 152nd person exonerated from death row since 1983. What were the charges brought against Hinton? The only thing reportedly linking Hinton to the crime was the word of a fast food worker who picked Hinton out of a line-up, leading to his arrest. Why was it important for a white ballistics expert to be hired? Despite pleas by Mr. Hintons lawyers, who cited conclusions by newly enlisted specialists, the state refused for years to reconsider the evidence. YOU HAVE 20,000 FOLLOWERS: $100 per post at a $5/CPM. In 1985, Hinton was arrested and charged with two capital murders based solely on the assertion that a dusty revolver taken from his mother's home was the gun used in both murders and in a third uncharged crime. But while Im here, everything around me gonna live. Legislators Wont Compensate Innocent Man for 30 Years on Death Row. In 2014, the Supreme Court unanimously overturned his conviction based on his attorneys deficient representation, and Jefferson County Circuit Court Judge Laura Petro ordered a new trial. The prosecutors who filed the motion to dismiss the case did not respond to messages seeking comment, and, through a spokesman, the Alabama attorney general declined to be interviewed. Streamed live on Jun 15, 2022 29 Dislike Share Save Washington Post Live 54.1K subscribers Anthony Ray Hinton was sentenced to death and held in solitary confinement for 28 years on Alabama's. Arrested for a series of capital murders in his home town with no corroborating evidence, and with no history of violent crime, Mr. Hinton was convicted on the basis of testimony that a gun owned by his mother - which had not been fired in 25 years - was the gun used in all three murders. Nominee for Best Memoir & Autobiography (2018) A powerful, revealing story of hope, love, justice, and the power of reading by a man who spent thirty years on death row for a crime he didn't commit. Hintons public defender was roundly criticized for his work hetried to appeal his case and routinely failed, according to The Guardian. If you have an immediate prayer need, please call our 24-hour prayer line at 800-700-7000. I said, Henry, I truly believe that you are going to Heaven, says Ray. The Sun Does Shine is an extraordinary testament to the power of hope sustained through the darkest times, now adapted for younger readers, with a revised foreword by Just Mercy author Bryan Stevenson. Dont miss reporting and analysis from the Hill and the White House. 2. During his decades in prison, he was supported by his mother's faith in his innocence, as well as that of a longtime friend, Lester Bailey, who visited him monthly. "Thirty years ago, the . The engineer said that there wasnt any connection between the weapon and the shooting. I truly believe God sent me to death row to meet Henry Francis Hays, says Ray. . [4], Doug Acker, a detective, attempted to persuade Hinton to sign a blank sheet of paper telling him [Hinton] that it was just to confirm that he had already read his rights. and "Y'all blacks always sticking up for each other."[who?] Wrongly convicted, he was on death row for decades. What was the turning point in prison for Hinton? I lived in hell for 30 years, so I dont want to die and go to hell. Anthony Hinton. Hintons luck changed, however, when Bryan Stevenson, a lawyer with the Equal Justice Initiative, took on his case. What do you think can be done to change these racial disparities and to keep cases like that of Mr. Hinton from happening. In 1985 Anthony Ray Hinton was charged with the murders of two restaurant managers in Birmingham, Alabama. Discover the book that broke his thirty-year habit on todays 700 Club. Hinton was sentenced to death and held on the state's death row for 28 years, and was later released in 2015. Deputies escort Mr. Hinton in the courthouse during his trial. One of his arresting officers explained his fate this way, after the prisoner told him he could prove he had been working at the time of one of the murders: You know, I dont even care whether you did or didnt do it In fact, I believe you didnt do it. He has spoken out against the death penalty, calling it a "form of lynching. Ive got to forgive, he said. Discover God's peace now. Now a Community Educator with EJI, Ray is doing what he can to bring reform to the justice system. Jesus didnt say, Hey, when an enemy come across you, I want you to hate him, says Ray. Instead, he retained a visually-impaired civil engineer with no expertise in firearms identification who admitted he could not operate the machinery necessary to examine the evidence. He spent 30 years in prison until, with the help of. Coverage of the latest true crime stories and famous cases explained, as well as the best TV shows, movies and podcasts in the genre. If you could speak with anyone interviewed in the video, what are two questions you would ask them? What challenges do you think theyd face once home after a long prison stay? At the time of Mr. Hintons initial trial, his lawyer used a visually impaired civil engineer with little expertise in firearms to rebut prosecutors whose case hinged on linking the handgun found in Mr. Hintons home to a string of shootings in and around Birmingham. After 28 years of living in a cell that was five . The judge finally dismissed the charges after prosecutors said that scientists at the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences tested the evidence and confirmed that the crime bullets cannot be matched to the Hinton weapon. It was 1986. Have your students watch the video and answer the questions below. A woman suspects a stroke as her eyes twitch and she experiences slurred speech. With no credible expert to challenge the States assertion of a match, Mr. Hinton was convicted and sentenced to death. An all-white jury sentenced him guilty of two counts of capital murder and to death by electric chair.. Twelve years after the new ballistics tests were ignored by an appeals court in 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court finally overturned Hintons conviction and granted him a new trial, at which point a new judge promptly dismissed the charges, according to a release from the Equal Justice Initiative. And you know why? I said, No. He said, You got a white man. This lesson uses a video segment from PBS NewsHours Searching for Justice series. official, to review the forensic evidence. In 1985 he was convicted of the murders of two restaurant workers in Birmingham, Ala. Thirty years later . A Christian man was falsely convicted of murder for 30 years, but he spent his time sharing Jesus inside the cells. [4], Hinton's initial appeals continued to be handled by his public defender, Sheldon C. Perhacs, who lost each of Hintons cases. Get all your true crime news from Oxygen. Anthony Ray Hinton (born June 1, 1956) is an American man who was wrongly convicted of the 1985 murders of two fast food restaurant managers in Birmingham, Alabama, sentenced to death, and held on the state's death row for 28 years. But something deep inside his character made it possible for him to make friends of everyone near him, from the white man next to him on death row who had lynched a black teenager to almost every single prison guard who met him. At Holman Correctional Facility, Rays cell was a mere 30 feet from the execution chair they called Yellow Mama. The refusal of state prosecutors to re-examine this case despite persuasive and reliable evidence of innocence is disappointing and troubling.. "To be accused of murder, itto me, it-it don't get no worse than that," says Anthony. It was an overwhelming day, and it should never have taken that long, says Charlotte. Still, even though Stevenson had new ballistics tests performed on Hintons behalf, the Alabama courts denied the appeal, after taking two years to deliberate. What did Hinton say were the five reasons given by the police officer that guaranteed his conviction? [emailprotected]. Although he spent nearly three decades on death row and solitary confinement for a crime that he didnt commit, Hinton said he still feels a kinship with returning citizens whose ballots represent another step in the direction of freedom and contributing to society as a free citizen of the United States. In 1985, Anthony Ray Hinton was arrested and charged with two counts of capital murder in Alabama. [4], The prosecution's only evidence at the trial was a statement that ballistics tests showed four crime scene bullets matched Hinton's mother's gun, which was discovered at her house during the investigation. Ray stayed on death row until the US Supreme Court overturned his sentence in 2015nearly thirty years later. He was wrongfully convicted of two murders and served nearly three decades in jail before being released in 2015. Anthony Ray Hinton did not sleep very well the night before Tuesdays presidential election. Anthony Ray Hinton spoke at Allegheny College on Thursday, Sept. 20. . Executions are carried out in the name of the people of Alabama and we should all be concerned if we make oursystem less reliable and the execution of innocent people more likely. Officers had retrieved a handgun from Mr. Hintons home and, after analyzing it and the recovered bullets, concluded that the shootings were tied. The credibility of his ballistics expert - the only one the attorney thought he could hire with the funds available - was discredited by the prosecutor due to the expert's physical limitations and lack of experience. However, the number of members also gradually became smaller when book club members were executed. [4] Finally, Hinton was the last prisoner left on death row. FLORENCE -- Anthony Ray Hinton was mowing the grass outside the house he . By Christina Gould, SAL Patron Services Manager. Can God change your life? Love your enemy. The only way that we will ever conquer hate is love.. That victim survived and then misidentified Hinton as his assailant; then the state completed this travesty by providing completely fake ballistic evidence to tie a gun found in Hintons mothers home to all three murders. I hated those men that did this to me.. He was 29 years old at the time. The lecture began with Hinton recounting the day of his arrest in extreme detail. At the time, Hinton worked at a supermarket warehouse and lived with his mother, Buhlar Hinton, at her home in rural Alabama, about half an hour north of Birmingham. Hinton told 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley about a conversation he had with a police lieutenant after having been arrested: I said, You got the wrong guy. And he said, I dont care whether you did it or dont. He said, But you gonna be convicted for it. Published: Apr. Hinton was a special guest and speaker at 442 Orange St. on Tuesday evening for an event honoring the innocent on death row hosted by Jewish society Shabtai. He went on tospend 28 years on death row 30 yearsin all, without his freedom. And number five, youre gonna have an all-white jury.. Hinton was convicted of each of the two murders and sentenced to death. His lawyer writes: Never have more guards, correctional staff and prison workers pulled me aside to offer assistance during the many years I have worked with Ray. By making the state postconviction process even more complicated and arbitrary, the law increases the likelihood that clients on death row will not receive full and fair review of their cases. Download the free myCBN app. Founded by a lawyer, Bryan Stevenson, it had a track record of overturning unjust convictions and in winning a. Anthony Ray, then a 29-year-old warehouseman, was mowing his mum's lawn when his life was torn apart in July 1985. Two days later, after serving 30 years in prison for a crime he didnt commit, Ray was released. Pastor Glen Berteau wants to reignite the fire of God within believers that have allowed their faith to become dormant. I am passionate in sharing Gods love to the world through the skills and talents God has blessed me with. Hinton also had an alibi he was employedata warehouse at the time of the murders, and his boss said on the stand that Hinton was at work at the time of at least one of the murders, The Guardian reports. Feb 24, 2017 Updated Feb 24, 2017. But it would be a single piece of evidence that held the key to proving Rays innocence. Hear Marc Meros reflection on life inside the ring, what knocked him out and A woman is diagnosed with cancer and its spreading quickly.