Missouri man who spent nearly 28 years in prison on a wrongful conviction sues St Louis, police

This news has been read 444 times!

ST LOUIS, Jan 22, (AP): A Missouri man who spent nearly 28 years in prison until a judge determined he was wrongfully convicted filed a lawsuit, alleging that St Louis police officers “detained, arrested, and framed him for a murder he did not commit.”

Lamar Johnson, 50, seeks unspecified damages in the lawsuit filed in US District Court in St Louis. It names the city of St. Louis and eight police officers.

“I am grateful to be free and I’m doing my best to make up for all the time that was stolen from me and my family, especially my daughters. I want to put this dark and painful chapter behind me, but there can be no healing without answers and accountability,” Johnson said in a statement provided by his lawyers.

Emma Freudenberger, an attorney for Johnson, said the lawsuit seeks accountability.

“Even after the Court declared his innocence, there have been no apologies and no consequences,” Freudenberger said in a statement. “The City of St Louis cannot continue to simply ignore the glaring police misconduct that has caused Mr Johnson and his family so much harm.”

Messages left with St. Louis police and the mayor’s office weren’t immediately returned.

Marcus Boyd was shot to death in October 1994 on his front porch by two masked men. Police and prosecutors said Johnson killed him in a dispute over drug money. Johnson maintained his innocence from the outset, but was convicted and sentenced to life in prison.

Then-Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner filed a motion in August 2022 seeking Johnson’s release after an investigation her office conducted with help from the Innocence Project convinced her he was innocent. At a hearing in December 2022, another man testified that it was he — and not Johnson — who joined a second man in the killing.

This news has been read 444 times!