68-Year-Old Black Man Receives $25M After Wrongful 44-Year Imprisonment

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• Ronnie Long was awarded $25 million in a wrongful conviction settlement.
• He was wrongfully convicted of raping a white woman in 1976 and spent 44 years in prison.
• The settlement acknowledges significant errors and misconduct in the original investigation and trial.

Ronnie Long, a black man wrongfully convicted of rape in 1976, has received a $25 million settlement for the 44 years he spent in prison.

He was exonerated in 2020, after his conviction was vacated by the United States District Court. Long's settlement includes $22 million from the city of Concord, North Carolina, and $3 million from the State Bureau of Investigation. The case against Long involved significant issues, including false evidence and testimonies from police officers, as well as withheld DNA evidence that pointed to his innocence. Long was released from prison on August 27, 2020, and was later pardoned by Governor Roy Cooper.

Long's wrongful conviction stemmed from a 1976 case where he was accused of raping Sarah Judson Bost at knifepoint. The conviction was largely based on the victim's identification and disregarded key alibi evidence. Over the years, Long's defense team appealed the conviction, citing false evidence and police misconduct. DNA evidence and fingerprints from the crime scene did not match Long, yet his requests for a new trial were repeatedly denied. It wasn't until 2015 that 43 fingerprints from the crime scene were found to exclude Long as the source, contributing to his eventual exoneration.

Following his release, Long has been active in advocating for criminal justice reform. The city of Concord issued a public apology as part of the settlement, acknowledging their responsibility for the wrongful conviction. Long's case has highlighted significant issues in the criminal justice system, particularly in cases involving racial biases and evidentiary misconduct.

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