OMAHA, Neb.—Three people imprisoned for nearly 20 years for a murder they didn’t commit could each be entitled to $1 million if state lawmakers approve a proposed law.
Sen. Kent Rogert of Tekamah has introduced a bill (LB260) that would provide for a minimum of $50,000 for each year an innocent person is incarcerated. It would provide an additional $50,000 for each year served on death row.
Rogert wants to make the measure retroactive so it covers the people wrongly convicted of the 1985 rape and murder of a Beatrice woman.
“A lot of these folks will come out with absolutely nothing,” Rogert said. “It’s one thing to transition a convicted felon. These people didn’t do anything.”
Thomas Winslow, Joseph White and Ada JoAnn Taylor spent nearly 20 years each in prison before being freed last year. Three others were released in 1994, after the completion of their sentences.
The State Pardons Board on Monday will consider whether to pardon Winslow, Taylor and three others convicted in the death of Helen Wilson. White’s conviction has already been overturned.
Last month, Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning said DNA evidence conclusively links Bruce Allen Smith of Oklahoma to the rape and murder. Smith died of AIDS in 1992.
Twenty-five states and the District of Columbia have laws that entitle exonerated inmates to government compensation, according to The Innocence Project, which represents inmates fighting to have their convictions overturned.
In a pre-session survey by The Associated Press, 14 Nebraska senators or senators-elect said they would support a measure providing compensation to exonerated inmates. Five said they would not, and 20 said they were not sure. One did not answer the question, and nine did not participate in the survey.
Rogert said the money to pay inmates would probably come out of the state’s general fund. With a tight budget the next two years, he could have a hard time pushing the measure through.
But he said it’s a needed change, and besides, former inmates such as those in the Beatrice case are likely to sue the state anyway, which could be costly.
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