His conviction overturned, Louisiana man walks free after 45 years in prison

A prison guard.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

A Louisiana judge overturned the rape conviction of a 65-year-old man who has spent the last 45 years in prison, writing that prosecutors withheld evidence that could have exonerated Wilbert Jones.

Jones left the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison on Wednesday, his family and friends waiting for him outside the gates. "Freedom — after more than 45 years and 10 months, that's going through my mind," he told reporters. Spending so much of his life in prison wasn't easy, but "I forgave," he said. "I forgive. I didn't have control of it. Why should I worry about it? I'm in charge of myself."

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.