N Illinois man freed after 1994 murder conviction tossed

WAUKEGAN, Sick. (AP) — A 58-year-old northern Illinois man who spent almost half of his life behind bars after being discovered responsible of killing his ex-wife walked out of a jail Tuesday after a decide vacated his conviction.

Herman Williams of Gurnee was free of the downstate Sheridan Correctional Heart following almost 29 years of incarceration after Lake County Choose Mark Levitt threw out his conviction for killing Penny Williams, whose physique was present in a Waukegan pond on Sept. 26, 1993.

The Navy veteran’s exoneration got here after work by his attorneys affiliated with the Illinois Innocence Challenge after which confirmed and acknowledged by the Lake County state’s legal professional’s workplace.

Innocence Challenge attorneys Lauren Kaeseberg and Vanessa Potkin argued Williams’ 1994 conviction was primarily based on scientifically unsupported testimony concerning his ex-wife’s time of demise. In addition they mentioned new, superior DNA testing didn’t discover Williams’ DNA on key organic proof.

Williams was convicted of homicide after a jury trial in 1994. However, citing “scientifically unsupported proof’ offered throughout the trial, new DNA outcomes, and failure to tender essential scientific materials to the protection, Lake County prosecutors acknowledged they now not had any religion within the authentic verdict.

Prosecutors on the time argued Williams killed his ex-wife so he may take his youngsters to California, the place he was being restationed.