BALTIMORE, Md. — Decades in prison for a crime they did not commit. Now, two men are free.
Brothers Kenneth McPherson and Eric Simmons were convicted in 1995 for conspiracy to committ murder 25 years ago.
The incident happened in East Baltimore after a man was killed and their conviction came following the testimony of two witnesses. One of the witnesses was to paid to say they saw the crim from a third floor window. The other was a 13-year-old boy who was threatened with murder charges and recanted his statement before the trial.
The two brothers shared the moment of freedom with their friends and family on Friday.
"I was in a pool, a swimming pool, and I was drowning, we was drowing, and she dove in and she grabbed us out and gave us CPR, and you saved my life," said Kenneth McPherson.
"This a little overwhelming, but I mean these two women first of all I want to say because it wasn't for them somebody taking the lead to believe in, like she said this was the same evidence they had 25 years ago, but they took the opportunity to go back and look at it all over again. And I reached out to have her talk over it in jail and this woman talked and she asked what side of the law you on, she about justice," said Eric Simmons.
A partnership with the federal government and the Innocence Project and the City State's Attorney's office was started last year.
McPherson and Simmons are the third and fourth people to have been exonerated because of this partnership.
