“I feel like a new person, I feel like I’m actually starting my life now,” said LaMonte McIntyre, who was wrongfully charged with a double murder, and was proven innocent 23 years later. McIntyre  spent half of his life in prison, and was released in 2017. He was 17 at the time of his conviction, and was released at the age of 41. McIntyre was wrongfully convicted for the murders of Donald Ewing and Doniel Quinn.

“Today, Lamonte McIntyre has been declared, finally and conclusively, a completely innocent man. That long-overdue recognition, along with the statutory payment and other benefits will help lighten a bit of the heavy load he has carried,” McIntyre’s lawyer, Cheryl A. Pilate. McIntyre sued the state of Kansas in 2019, and was awarded $1.5 million. The settlement includes counseling, access to state funded healthcare benefits for 2020 and 2021, and a tuition waiver to cover his post-secondary education up to 130 credit hours.