Clarence David Hill (pictured) has been freed after spending nearly 16 years on Arizona’s death row. Hill, who is terminally ill, recently had his 1st-degree murder conviction and death sentence overturned. Though he maintains his innocence in the 1989 murder of his landlord, Hill chose to avoid the prospect of a new trial by accepting an agreement that allowed him to plead guilty to 2nd-degree murder and be sentenced to time already served. Hill’s attorney noted that his client only took the plea agreement so that he could be with his family.

(Associated Press, October 14, 2005). See Innocence.

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