How many years did James Bain spend behind bars before his exoneration today in Florida?
Fla. man exonerated after 35 years behind bars By MITCH STACY (AP) – 2 hours ago BARTOW, Fla. — James Bain used a cell phone for the first time Thursday, calling his elderly mother to tell her he had been freed after 35 years behind bars for a crime he did not commit. Mobile devices didn’t exist in 1974, the year he was sentenced to life in prison for kidnapping a 9-year-old boy and raping him in a nearby field. Neither did the sophisticated DNA testing that officials more recently used to determine he could not have been the rapist. “Nothing can replace the years Jamie has lost,” said Seth Miller, a lawyer for the Florida Innocence Project, which helped Bain win freedom. “Today is a day of renewal.” Bain spent more time in prison than any of the 246 inmates previously exonerated by DNA evidence nationwide, according to the project. The longest-serving before him was James Lee Woodard of Dallas, who was released last year after spending more than 27 years in prison for a murder he did
James Bain’s first taste of freedom was sweet: A large glazed doughnut, a bottle of Mello Yello and some spearmint gum. After spending 35 years in prison for a rape he didn’t commit, Bain’s attorneys and family members were happy to supply the snacks. It was one of his first request’s after the Thursday morning hearing that set him free. Bain, 54, sat at a blonde wood table at the courthouse after the hearing and talked about what was next. “I want to see my mom and hug her,” he said. Beyond that, he spoke of a high school diploma, and then a job. He carted laundry in prison and also did some welding, so perhaps he might do something like that in the real world, he said. His sisters and other relatives couldn’t stop grabbing his hands and holding him before taking Bain home, where his wheelchair-bound mother was waiting in West Tampa. Sources: http://www.tampaba
James Bain used a cell phone for the first time Thursday, calling his elderly mother to tell her he had been freed after 35 years behind bars for a crime he did not commit. Mobile devices didn’t exist in 1974, the year he was sentenced to life in prison for kidnapping a 9-year-old boy and raping him in a nearby field. Neither did the sophisticated DNA testing that officials more recently used to determine he could not have been the rapist. “Nothing can replace the years Jamie has lost,” said Seth Miller, a lawyer for the Florida Innocence Project, which helped Bain win freedom. “Today is a day of renewal.” Bain spent more time in prison than any of the 246 inmates previously exonerated by DNA evidence nationwide, according to the project. The longest-serving before him was James Lee Woodard of Dallas, who was released last year after spending more than 27 years in prison for a murder he did not commit. Sources:
