Board approves compensation for man wrongfully convicted
CATHERINE SCOTT of Capital News Service
April 21, 2021
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After serving 19 years in prison after being wrongfully convicted of attempted murder, a man was awarded more than $1.6 million in compensation from the state of Maryland.
The Board of Public Works voted unanimously Wednesday to approve funding for Melvin Thomas, now 40, who spent close to half his life in prison and was exonerated in December for an attempted murder charge dating to 2001.
“For all Marylanders who have been imprisoned wrongfully, Mr. Thomas is a victim of a broken criminal justice system that continues to plague the country,” Comptroller Peter Franchot, D, said at the meeting Wednesday. “Although no dollar amount can restore what was taken from him, I assume that today’s action will bring some solace.”