anthony ray hinton arresting officer anthony ray hinton arresting officer

The cop was right. Anthony Ray Hinton walked out of the Jefferson County Jail in Birmingham, Alabama, a free man for the first time in 30 years at 9:30 a.m. on Friday, April 3, 2015. Still, even though Stevenson had new ballistics tests performed on Hintons behalf, the Alabama courts denied the appeal, after taking two years to deliberate. Hinton was 29 when was convicted and sentenced to die in the state's electric chair. EJI attorneys engaged three of the nations top firearms examiners who testified in 2002 that the revolver could not be matched to crime evidence. Mr. Hinton was appointed a lawyer who mistakenly thought he could not get enough money to hire a qualified firearms examiner. 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. 0. . They just didn't take me from my family and friends. He was convicted because hes poor, Mr. Stevenson said. You gonna have a white jury more than likely. And he said, All of that spell conviction, conviction, conviction. I said, Well, does it matter that I didnt do it? He said, Not to me. Hinton went on to explain how he felt about the racial bias in his case: I cant get over the fact that just because I was born black and someone that had the authority who happened to be white felt the need to send me to a cage and try to take my life for something that they knew that I didnt do. Bryan Stevenson, Hintons attorney and the executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, joined Hinton for the interview, and spoke about the systemic issues surrounding the case. Hinton would smell burning flesh from the electric chair, also called Yellow Mama, because it was close to his cell. Coverage of the latest true crime stories and famous cases explained, as well as the best TV shows, movies and podcasts in the genre. But as a poor black man in the South, Hinton was sentenced to death by electrocution. He went on tospend 28 years on death row 30 yearsin all, without his freedom. All the while, Mr. Hinton remained at a prison in south Alabama, awaiting his execution. #ElectionDay #Vote2020 pic.twitter.com/J2eFOWnheD. Officers had retrieved . Anthony Hinton was arrested after the manager identified him from a photo lineup, even though he was working in a locked warehouse fifteen miles away at the time of the crime. In 2015, Hintons 30 years of unbroken prayers were answered and the nations highest court ruled unanimously in his favor. Theres five things theyre going to convict you to, the officer told him. Your natural reaction was it-it's over. Anthony Ray Hinton, an inmate on Alabama's death row, asks us to decide whether the Alabama courts correctly applied Strickland to his case. Smyth maintains a comprehensive website and blog on all things comics in education at TeachingWithComics.com. By unanimous vote, the court ruled to grant Ray a new trial. And I have changed my views on so many things. 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, 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, Hinton was exonerated in 2015, when he was 59 years old, according to, Thirty years ago, the prosecution seemed deemed to take my life from me, he continued, according to an NPR, Hintonstarted a book club while he was incarcerated, and went on to write a memoir about his experience, called, , Hinton has also found success as a motivational speaker and fierce advocate for prison reform, having been invited to dozens of universities and conferences to share his story since his release, according to the, "Just Mercy" opens in limited release on Christmas Day, and hits theaters everywhere on Jan. 10. Mar 27, 2019 . It only takes the first two pages of the introduction by the authors equally remarkable lawyer, Bryan Stevenson, to make the reader appalled. I have no respect for the prosecutors, the judges. This has nothing to do with luck. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. (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. 4. Their key piece of evidenceexpert testimony claiming the ballistics report of the bullets pulled from the victims matched a handgun found in Rays home. Ray had a message, and he taught that message to his neighbor Henry, though they only had one thing in common. Since Anthony Ray Hinton was exonerated and released from death row over two years ago, Alabama lawmakers have not only refused to compensate him for the three decades he spent on death row for a crimehe did not commit, but also passed legislation changing the appeals process in death penalty cases so that innocent people like Mr. Hinton now face aneven greater risk of being executed. Copyright 2022 GOD TV, Simco Media LLC. Following his release, Hinton famously remarked, The sun do shine., Thirty years ago, the prosecution seemed deemed to take my life from me, he continued, according to an NPR report. Wrongly convicted, he was on death row for decades. I realized I was there because the wrong people were in office and I had a chance to begin to put men and women that are going to uphold the Constitution.. 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 Ray Hinton speaks to students on November 13, 2018, in the . That paid to keep him on death row for 30 years for a crime he didnt commit. [citation needed] Hinton's mother died in 2002. And to show him what real love felt like and real love had no color. In April 2015, the state of Alabama dismissed all charges when state ballistics experts were unable to match the bullets to the handgun. What are the mistakes in the case against Mr. Hinton? "Just Mercy" opens in limited release on Christmas Day, and hits theaters everywhere on Jan. 10. He must do exactly what he said he would do. What were the charges brought against Hinton? 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. Anthony Hinton, 29 years old with no history of violent crime, steadfastly maintained his innocence. Hinton is the 152nd person since 1973 to be exonerated from death row in the United States, and the sixth in the state of Alabama. How was the case finally overturned? 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.. [18] He had previously spoken to the students of the Class of 2019, six months after his release, in 2015. Discover God's peace now. They gonna say you shot him. Warm-up activity: Think, write, and share with a partner (virtual option create a Google doc or online discussion have students write their answers and respond to at least one other students answer). And number five, youre gonna have an all-white jury.. What do you notice about the racial differences of incarceration in the United States. I am passionate in sharing Gods love to the world through the skills and talents God has blessed me with. You dont know freedom until its taken from you, Hinton told The Washington Post on Tuesday night. "[14] He completed a memoir entitled The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row (2018), and has given readings and talks around the country about the book and his experiences. The Supreme Court is considering a challenge to laws that protect websites from lawsuits, Lesson includes resources to help you talk with your students about traumatic events, Read Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous speech and explore themes such as the social conditions in the U.S. that led to the Civil Rights Movement. Why me? What did Hinton say were the five reasons given by the police officer that guaranteed his conviction? Anthony Ray Hinton spent 30 years on death row for a crime he didn't commit. with his arrest in one shooting that occurred while witnesses said he was at work miles away. Love your enemy. The only way that we will ever conquer hate is love.. Death Penalty Information Center | 1701 K Street NW Suite 205 Washington, DC 20006, Phone: 202-289-2275 | Email: [emailprotected], Privacy Policy | 2023 Death Penalty Information Center. They had every intention of executing me for something I didn't do. All rights reserved. This is the state of Rosa Parks who refused to give up her seat and we changed things through legislation and the vote. If you didnt do it, one of your brothers did. [4] After being released, Hinton wrote and published a memoir The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row (2018). I hated those men that did this to me.. You want to know why?, Number one, youre black. On Tuesday, he cast a vote for president. By not voting, you allow people to get into the drivers seat that allows them to oppress you even more., For 30 years, Mr. Hinton was stripped of all his rights while he sat on Alabama's death row for a crime he didn't commit. Ask students: What would you do if you or a loved one was arrested for a crime they did not commit? With no credible expert to challenge the States assertion of a match, Mr. Hinton was convicted and sentenced to death. The students had been so inspired by his earlier address that over 100 of them submitted a petition to the university administration, asking that he be invited to speak at commencement.[19]. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, Mr. Hinton is the 152nd person exonerated from an American death row since 1973. Fourteen months later, the district attorney in Alabama finally abandoned the case, and Hinton went free. Anthony Ray Hinton spent three decades on Alabama's death row for crimes he did not commit. They began, he said, with his arrest in one shooting that occurred while witnesses said he was at work miles away. He has also guest lectured at multiple universities and travels the country giving professional development on comics as engaging literature. Because he was convicted of something, he didnt even do. Yes, Im going to write and spread His love because I love Him and His people, and my heart is to live for Him. And, haltingly, he began to talk about mercy. [emailprotected]. It was an overwhelming day, and it should never have taken that long, says Charlotte. I dont believe the God that I serve is gonna let me die for a crime He knows I didnt commit.. 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. Introductions: Anthony Ray Hinton May 2, 2019. In 2014 the Supreme Court of the United States unanimously overturned his conviction on appeal, after which the state dropped all charges against him. EJI attorneys engaged three of the nation's top firearms . With the help of his co-author Lara Love Hardin, Hinton conveys all the horror of his years in solitary confinement, barely able to breath in 120F (49C) summer heat, eating food that tasted like dust. 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. Anthony Ray Hinton. According to Hinton, the officer who carried out his arrest said that he "didn't care whether I did it or not," guaranteeing he would be convicted. Winner of the 2019 Moore Prize Finalist, Dayton Peace Prize, 2019 "An amazing and heartwarming story, it restores our faith in the inherent goodness of humanity." - Archbishop Desmond Tutu A powerful, revealing story of hope, love, and justice. But on July 31, 1985, 29-year-old Ray's life changes drastically when the police arrest him for a series of murders that Ray didn't commit. But, Hinton was still convicted and sentenced to death. [4] Finally, Hinton was the last prisoner left on death row. "I woke up like I do every morning I knew that my mother was cooking," Hinton recounted. Anthonys mother and best friend also were crushed by the outcome. Number four, youre gonna have a white judge. It hurts so bad, says Ray. "To be accused of murder, itto me, it-it don't get no worse than that," says Anthony. And Anthony made a decision to accept the reality and still allow God to use him while in prison. Hinton was granted a new trial, and the charges were dismissed after prosecutors said that the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences determined that the bullets that killed the restaurant managers could not have been used with Hintons mothers gun.