Philadelphia Will Pay $9.8 Million To Man Exonerated After Nearly 30 Years | 22 Words

A Philadelphia man jailed for almost thirty years for a crime he didn't commit was freed after it was revealed he was innocent.

And now, the state has been forced to pay big for its error...

Innocent until proven guilty...

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 But despite this famous phrase, things don't always work out properly in the eyes of the law.

If the jury believes a person is guilty...

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 That person will be sentenced and they will serve time behind bars.

But what if this person is actually innocent of the crime?

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 Tragically, people have actually served real prison sentences in the past after being wrongfully convicted of the wrong crime.

And one of these people is Chester Hollman III.

Hollman served a whopping twenty-eight years in jail for a crime he didn't commit.

Hollman was arrested for murder back in 1991.

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 The real murderer of the University of Pennsylvania student just so happened to be driving a similar car, which is what resulted in Hollman being convicted.

Hollman was convicted on the basis of eye-witnesses alone...

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 And there wasn't any hard evidence to suggest that the man had committed the monstrous crime.

The prosecution hinged on witness testimony...

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 But it turned out many of these statements had been coerced from witnesses.

There were even more shocking revelations...

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 Including claims that some witness statements were entirely fabricated.

And last year, a judge ruled against the police and prosecutors...

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 Leading to Hollman finally being released from jail.

Hollman has been exonerated of his crime.

But the injustice he faced could not be forgotten...

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And last Wednesday, a settlement was announced...

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 Finally giving Hollman a small amount of justice after his awful experience.

He's set to receive $9.8 million in compensation.

via: Action News on ABC6

 This is just $50,000 short of the largest ever payout in the state of Philadelphia.

"There are no words to express what was taken from me, but this settlement closes out a difficult chapter in my life as my family and I now embark on a new one," Hollman shared.

via: Action News on ABC6

 "There was irrefutable evidence that Chester was innocent, is innocent, and has always been innocent and would never have been wrongfully convicted aside from extraordinary police misconduct. He’s doing the best he can to move forward. He’s an incredibly strong person," echoed his attorney in The Philadelphia Inquirer.

While this doesn't give Hollman any of the years of his life back, it is a good place to start.

For another incredibly moving story of the legal system, scroll on for one mom who undertook a "real-life Taken" mission to find her missing daughter...