Police seized an old revolver belonging to Mr. Hinton's mother, and state firearm examiners said that was the gun used in all three crimes. Hinton would smell burning flesh from the electric chair, also called Yellow Mama, because it was close to his cell. 2023 The Christian Broadcasting Network, Inc., A nonprofit 501 (c)(3) Charitable Organization. He told a gathering of family and supporters that "the sun does shine." Hinton, 59, wiped . [4], Additionally, Hintons boss testified that Hinton was working at the time of the incident, and that he was cleaning the supermarket; despite this, the jury still convicted him. We vacate the lower court's judgment and remand the case . The judge finally dismissed the charges after prosecutors said that scientists at the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences tested the evidence and confirmed that the crime bullets cannot be matched to the Hinton weapon. Anthony, or Ray, still remembers the arresting officers chilling words There are five things that gonna convict you. I asked God to remove this hatred, says Ray. Hinton mug shot. And number five, youre gonna have an all-white jury., Anthony fought to claim his innocence. He added that from the outset, this case exhibited many of the classic signs of innocence.. The States evidence of a match was wholly discredited by three highly qualified firearms examiners, including the former chief of the FBIs firearm and toolmarks unit, who testified in 2002 that the bullets from all three crimes could not be matched to a single gun at all, much less to Mrs. Hintons gun, and found that her gun could not have fired the bullets from the third uncharged robbery. The only thing reportedly linking Hinton to the crime was the word of a fast food worker who picked Hinton out of a line-up, leading to his arrest. [4], Doug Acker, a detective, attempted to persuade Hinton to sign a blank sheet of paper telling him [Hinton] that it was just to confirm that he had already read his rights. By AFP Reporters Alabaman Anthony Ray Hinton, an African American spent 30 years on death row because, he says, he was "black and poor." His name finally cleared in Alabama, he now campaigns for justice which he says can only be achieved by beating Donald Trump at the ballot box. And number five, youre gonna have an all-white jury.. Read this article and answer the following questions. Prosecutors dropped the case against Anthony Ray Hinton, 58, when new . I said, Henry, I truly believe that you are going to Heaven, says Ray. As my good friend Bryan Stevenson says, the moral arc of the universe bends toward justice but justice needs help., How I got 30 years on death row for someone else's crime, 'I went to death row for 28 years through no fault of my own', Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. The Supreme Court is considering a challenge to laws that protect websites from lawsuits, Lesson includes resources to help you talk with your students about traumatic events, Read Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous speech and explore themes such as the social conditions in the U.S. that led to the Civil Rights Movement. Police arrest Anthony Ray Hintonthe man they believe committed three armed robberies that left two restaurant managers dead, and a third wounded. [10] The Court ruled that Hinton's original defense lawyer had provided "constitutionally deficient" ineffective assistance of counsel, and remanded his case to the Alabama state court for retrial. Anthony Hinton, 29 years old with no history of violent crime, steadfastly maintained his innocence. And Anthony made a decision to accept the reality and still allow God to use him while in prison. So Ive got to forgive. He has become an inspirational speaker, traveling the country and the world. He has received no compensation. The Lost Books Of The Bible: Should We Accept Or Reject? All rights reserved. Ray was arrested, convicted, imprisoned, and sentenced to death for a crime he didn't commit. I was released from death row. Your natural reaction was it-it's over. Anthony Ray Hinton's story of being wrongfully convicted and serving almost thirty years on Death Row is one of gargantuan unfairness. The only evidence that the state ever had claimed, connected Mr. Hinton, did not exist.. This lesson is part of NewsHours Searching for Justice series on criminal justice reform. Managers John Davidson and Thomas. Anthony Ray Hinton. Dick Kearns, Fr. Ray stayed on death row until the US Supreme Court overturned his sentence in 2015nearly thirty years later. Anthony Ray Hinton, who was on death row for nearly 30 years, had been charged and convicted in the 1985 murders of two Birmingham area fast-food managers. To be accused of murder, itto me, it-it dont get no worse than that, says Anthony. ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY: Copyright 2021 NewsHour Production LLC. After 30 years in custody for crimes he did not commit, Mr. Hintons release is bittersweet. Mr. Hinton spent 30 years on death row for a crime he did not commit. Hinton was sentenced to death and held on the state's death row for 28 years, and was later released in 2015. In 1985, Anthony Ray Hinton was arrested and charged with two counts of capital murder in Alabama. Soon after, prosecutors pushed for conviction upon him, and his appeal for innocence was defeated. Have students pair/share with a partner. I dont have a choice., Alabama Man Freed After Decades on Death Row, https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/04/us/anthony-ray-hinton-alabama-prison-freed-murder.html. Anthony Ray Hintons memoir of his wrongful imprisonment for 30 years for three murders he did not commit is a riveting account of the multiple outrages of the criminal justice system of Alabama. With the help of his co-author Lara Love Hardin, Hinton conveys all the horror of his years in solitary confinement, barely able to breath in 120F (49C) summer heat, eating food that tasted like dust. Adam Desiderio/ABC. According to what we discussed this year the Read the Sixth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution below and determine which of the five reasons from the second question of activity 1 were unconstitutional. He talked about his wrongful conviction, his decades in prison, and the lingering effects he has experienced after leaving prison. This article was published more than2 years ago. In the interview, Hinton described how issues of race permeated his case. And you know why? I said, No. He said, You got a white man. FLORENCE -- Anthony Ray Hinton was mowing the grass outside the house he . See her moment of surrender, and the miracle of life. Mr. Hinton thanked his supporters and legal team. By not voting, you allow people to get into the drivers seat that allows them to oppress you even more., For 30 years, Mr. Hinton was stripped of all his rights while he sat on Alabama's death row for a crime he didn't commit. And to show him what real love felt like and real love had no color. He also works with the U.S. State Department in a global online exchange program teaching educators and students to use comics to find their voice and to solve pressing global issues. Share your prayer requests, receive prayer and pray for others! Number two, a white man is gonna say you shot him, whether you shot him or not, believe, me I dont care, says Ray. "Number one, you're black. Anthony Ray Hinton did not sleep very well the night before Tuesdays presidential election. Dont miss reporting and analysis from the Hill and the White House. An all-white jury would find Ray guilty of two counts of capital murder and sentence him to death by electric chair. It took almost a decade for Mr. Hinton and his lawyers to recruit a panel of experts, including a former F.B.I. During their unlikely friendship, Ray saw God change Henry from a man full of hatred, to one who knew Gods love and had found redemption in Jesus Christ. First, have students answer the following questions, either in class discussion or as written answers. Hinton was granted a new trial, and the charges were dismissed after prosecutors said that the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences determined that the bullets that killed the restaurant managers could not have been used with Hintons mothers gun. In April 2015, the state of Alabama dismissed all charges when state ballistics experts were unable to match the bullets to the handgun. It was 1986. He was convicted because hes poor, Mr. Stevenson said. Anthony Ray Hinton found it easier to adjust than most people, when the pandemic first halted society a year ago, with its mandated lockdowns and widespread closures. [3], On April 3, 2015, Hinton was released from prison after Laura Petro, a Jefferson County Circuit Court judge, overturned his conviction and the state dropped all charges against him.[2][6]. Prosecutors admitted that they could not match four bullets found at the crime scene with Hinton's mother's gun, and that this was the only evidence offered in the original murder trial. Get more than a Sunday sermon. Mr. Hinton walked out of the Jefferson County Jail a free man. Perhacs hired a civil engineer who had impaired vision and didnt have any forensic experience. The civil engineer testified that the ballistics test did not link the gun authorities found to either of the shootings. What evidence was given? Anthonys mother and best friend also were crushed by the outcome. The sun does shine, he said as he was embraced by family and friends. In 2003, for instance, the Alabama attorney general said, The experts did not prove Mr. Hintons innocence, and the state does not doubt his guilt.. Overview: The struggle to adapt to life after conviction is a major challenge, especially for those who were innocent of the crime that led to a prison sentence. 0. Students will examine the challenges faced by individuals wrongfully convicted of felonies. Legislators Wont Compensate Innocent Man for 30 Years on Death Row. This has everything to do with the way we treat those who are vulnerable in our criminal justice system.. New York Times bestselling book by Anthony Ray Hinton. He-he-he's going to be executed, says Lester. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, Mr. Hinton is the 152nd person exonerated from an American death row since 1973. I dont believe the God that I serve is gonna let me die for a crime He knows I didnt commit.. Using television and the Internet, CBN is proclaiming the Good News in 149 countries and territories, with programs and content in 67 languages. (You will need to make a copy of the document to edit it.). Hear Marc Meros reflection on life inside the ring, what knocked him out and A woman is diagnosed with cancer and its spreading quickly. In 1985, Anthony Ray Hinton was arrested and charged with two counts of capital murder in Alabama. Moving forward, he chose to pray for those men who set him up instead. Anthony Ray, then a 29-year-old warehouseman, was mowing his mum's lawn when his life was torn apart in July 1985. Discover the book that broke his thirty-year habit on todays 700 Club. Then Anthony spent the first three years in the prison full of bitterness in his heart. He also wrote a book about his time in prison called The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row, which has since been selected for . As she desperately prays for healing, hear the message she receives from God on todays A woman receives an answer to a prayer she never wanted to pray. I even asked God, What did I do so bad?. Overview: The struggle to adapt to life after conviction is a major challenge, especially for those who were innocent of the crime that led to a prison sentence. On Tuesday, he cast a vote for president. Hence, he asked God to remove the hatred and bitterness in his heart. [2] Hinton was sentenced to death and held on the state's death row for 28 years before his 2015 release.[2][3][4][5][6]. AMY GOODMAN: Anthony Ray Hinton was convicted of murdering two fast-food managers in separate robberies in 1985. . Hinton also had an alibi he was employedata warehouse at the time of the murders, and his boss said on the stand that Hinton was at work at the time of at least one of the murders, The Guardian reports. Our tax dollars that paid for the judge and the prosecutor that prosecuted him. [emailprotected]. If you have an immediate prayer need, please call our 24-hour prayer line at 800-700-7000. Anthony Ray Hinton Equal Justice Initiative. He said, Number three, youre gonna have a white prosecutor. One of those people was Henry Hays, a KKK member on death row for lynching a Black teenager. Hinton has also found success as a motivational speaker and fierce advocate for prison reform, having been invited to dozens of universities and conferences to share his story since his release, according to the Macmillan Speakers Bureau. But that isnt what makes this a genuine spiritual experience: that comes from the nearly biblical capacity of the author to endure, to forgive, and finally to triumph. On February 25, 1985, and July 2, 1985, two fast food managers, John Davidson and Thomas Wayne Vason, were killed in separate incidents during armed robberies at their fast food restaurants in Birmingham. Arrested for a series of capital murders in his home town with no corroborating evidence, and with no history of violent crime, Mr. Hinton was convicted on the basis of testimony that a gun owned by his mother - which had not been fired in 25 years - was the gun used in all three murders. The cop was right. State prosecutors never questioned the new findings but nonetheless refused to re-examine the case or concede error. Mr. Hinton, 58, argued for decades that Alabama officials including the judge who oversaw his trial and is now retired had made a series of compounding mistakes after three shootings in 1985 that left two men dead and another wounded. Hinton was convicted of murdering two fast food restaurant managers and sentenced to death at the age of 29. "I woke up like I do every morning I knew that my mother was cooking," Hinton recounted. St. Bonaventure University in New York awarded Hinton an honorary doctorate degree in May. Police arrived at the house near Birmingham, Alabama, and arrested him for. Anthony Ray Hinton (born June 1, 1956) is an American man who was wrongly convicted of the 1985 murders of two fast food restaurant managers in Birmingham, Alabama, sentenced to death, and held on the state's death row for 28 years. He spent 30 years in prison until, with the help of. And I have changed my views on so many things. Anthony Ray Hinton is an American activist, writer, and author who was wrongly convicted of the 1985 murders of two fast food restaurant managers in Birmingham, Alabama. Bryan Stevenson, one of Mr. Hintons lawyers and the executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, said Mr. Hintons right to justice had been limited as an impoverished black man. I hated those men that did this to me.. We have a system that is compromised by racial bias, and his case proves it., Weve gotten into a culture, he said in a separate interview, where the pressure to convict and to achieve these outcomes is so great that owning up to mistakes is less frequent than youd like to imagine.. What challenges do you think theyd face once home after a long prison stay? In 1985, Hinton was arrested and charged with two capital murders based solely on the assertion that a dusty revolver taken from his mother's home was the gun used in both murders and in a third uncharged crime. by Anthony Ray Hinton with Lara Love Hardin The Sun Does Shine is a powerful examination of both our flawed justice system and of one man's personal resilience and faith. One of his arresting officers explained his fate this way, after the prisoner told him he could prove he had been working at the time of one of the murders: You know, I dont even care whether you did or didnt do it In fact, I believe you didnt do it. This has nothing to do with luck. But last year, the Supreme Court said that Mr. Hintons defense had been unacceptable, setting up a new trial and essentially forcing prosecutors to review the evidence for a case in which they acknowledged the forensic studies were paramount. Hinton declined to sign it. 5. His peaceful morning was quickly interrupted when police officers - with a warrant for Hinton's arrest - taunted, handcuffed and arrested the teenage Hinton. Hintonstarted a book club while he was incarcerated, and went on to write a memoir about his experience, called, The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row. Since its publication in 2018, the book has been widely praised, with Oprah Winfrey selecting it for her official book club last June and applauding Hinton in a string of interviews, according to CBS This Morning. Write the Vision, Make It Plain, Run With It. Former death row inmate Anthony Ray Hinton, who was exonerated in 2015 after spending nearly 30 years behind bars in Alabama, says he has forgiven the state for its decades-long injustice. Anthony Ray Hinton spent decades in jail for crimes he did not commit. But then, soon, he realized he became the person his mother didnt raise him to be. When the very people that you been taught to believe in the police, the D.A., these are the people that are supposed to stand for justice and when you know that they lied to you, its hard for you to have trust in anybody, he said. So I believe in the promise of hope alive, he said. The students had been so inspired by his earlier address that over 100 of them submitted a petition to the university administration, asking that he be invited to speak at commencement.[19]. [4] Hinton was portrayed by O'Shea Jackson Jr. in the 2019 film Just Mercy. Hinton knew it was a case of mistaken identity and naively believed that the truth would prove his innocence and set him free. Anthony Hinton. The first three years, I was in a stage of hating, says Ray. Now, at 58, after spending decades behind bars, Hinton is free. Anthony Ray Hinton leaves the Jefferson County jail in Birmingham, Alabama in April 2015, after nearly 30 years on death row. Click here for more stories in the series and watch for more NewsHour EXTRA lesson content based on Searching for Justice stories. In this lesson, students meet. Hinton told 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley about a conversation he had with a police lieutenant after having been arrested: I said, You got the wrong guy. And he said, I dont care whether you did it or dont. He said, But you gonna be convicted for it. He was 29 years old at the time. He went on tospend 28 years on death row 30 yearsin all, without his freedom. The Sun Does Shine is an extraordinary testament to the power of hope sustained through the darkest times, now adapted for younger readers, with a revised foreword by Just Mercy author Bryan Stevenson. At Holman Correctional Facility, Rays cell was a mere 30 feet from the execution chair they called Yellow Mama. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Police seized an old revolver belonging to Mr. Hintons mother, and state firearm examiners said that was the gun used in all three crimes. He said, Everybody that played a part in sending me to death row, you will answer to God.[5][13] Hinton filed a claim for nearly $1.5 million in compensation for his time in jail due to the wrongful conviction. Students will look at the ways race and other factors play a role in wrongful convictions. And number five, youre gonna have an all-white jury.. In the first two robberies, the managers were killed and there were no witnesses or physical evidence . #ElectionDay #Vote2020 pic.twitter.com/J2eFOWnheD. After 28 years of living in a cell that was five . In 1985, Anthony Ray Hinton was arrested and wrongfully charged with two counts of capital murder in Alabama. BELTON Two Bell County men were indicted by a grand . Hinton was convicted of each of the two murders and sentenced to death. Mr. Perhacss choice a man later described by a prosecutor as a one-eyed charlatan did little to help the defense, and Mr. Hinton was convicted and sentenced to death. Hinton was freed in 2015 after spending 28 years on death row for two 1985 murders that occurred during separate robberies of fast-food restaurants in Birmingham. Number one, youre Black. What do you do when you tell a lawyer that youre innocent and he looks at you and says, The problem with that statement.