NORTH CAROLINA (USA): WRONGLY CONVICTED BROTHERS EACH GET $750,000 IN COMPENSATION

September 2, 2015: The state of North Carolina sought to make amends, awarding each man $750,000 for the time they spent behind bars after they falsely confessed to taking part in the killing of an 11-year-old girl.
Henry McCollum, 51, appeared calm as a state official approved the maximum payout under the law to him and half-brother Leon Brown, 47.
Brown did not attend the hearing; he is in the hospital, suffering from mental health problems including post-traumatic stress disorder, the brothers' lawyer said. McCollum and Brown were released last September after a judge threw out their convictions, citing new DNA evidence that points to another man in the 1983 rape and slaying of Sabrina Buie. McCollum had been the longest-serving inmate on North Carolina's death row.
Brown had been sentenced to life in prison. They were pronounced innocent in June by Gov. Pat McCrory, who issued pardons that made them eligible for compensation. McCollum, who has been living with his sister in the Fayetteville area, said the money will enable him to support himself and help his family.
North Carolina is among 30 states that have laws for compensating people wrongfully convicted, according to the Innocence Project. But North Carolina stands alone with its Innocence Inquiry Commission, set up to investigate disputed cases. It performed the DNA testing that set the brothers free. The current district attorney for Robeson County, who didn't prosecute McCollum and Brown, has said he is considering charging the man whose DNA was found on the cigarette butt. That man is in prison for another murder. Meanwhile, Brown has been hospitalized at least 6 times in the last year for mental health problems that include hallucinations and deep depression, attorney Patrick Megaro said. (Source: Associated Press, 02/09/2015)