National

He spent 34 years in prison. Evidence on file for decades exonerated him last month.



Risheen Crosland, left, and his father, Curtis Crosland, gather with family members in Philadelphia last month after Curtis Crosland was released from prison for a crime he did not commit. (Jessica Griffin/AP)

By Caroline Anders
Today at 12:11 a.m. EDT

Decades ago, two witnesses linked Curtis Crosland to the killing of South Philadelphia grocery store owner Il Man Heo during a nighttime robbery.

No physical evidence connected Crosland to the scene, according to court documents. He was convicted and sentenced to life in prison based entirely on their statements, the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office says.

Crosland spent 34 years — more than half his life — in prison for the crime. But the state now says investigators may have not handed over “troubling” information that would have undermined the witnesses’ credibility decades ago — and pointed to another suspect.

The case that left Crosland behind bars for decades was recently unraveled by the district attorney’s office. After the office’s conviction integrity unit (CIU) — created to examine assertions of innocence and wrongful conviction — launched an investigation into the case, the 60-year-old was exonerated and released from prison in late June.

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By Caroline Anders
Caroline Anders is a reporting intern on the General Assignment desk. Twitter https://twitter.com/caroIineanders