There was a remarkable moment in court Thursday when two wrongfully convicted men learned they were free after more than 40 years behind bars.
Clifford Williams, 76, put his head down and wept. His nephew Nathan Myers, now 61, walked over and embraced his uncle.
After a few minutes, State Attorney Melissa Nelson gently prompted the men. Did they want to go join their families?
Their response: Can we?
Shedding a life in custody will be no easy task for two men wrongly convicted of murder in 1976. But they were instantly taken into their family’s embrace. More than a dozen siblings and children attended the emotional proceedings. Once outside, Nathan Myers – younger than his uncle by 15 years – bent gingerly to his knees and kissed the sidewalk.
The decision to free the men who spent a collective 84 years in prison came after a brief hearing in the courtroom of Circuit Judge Angela Cox. The judge’s order followed a 10-month investigation by the Conviction Integrity Review unit, created by State Attorney Melissa Nelson last January. It marks the first time in Florida history that a conviction reversal was initiated by prosecutors.
“[This] office has lost faith in the convictions,” a 73-page report concluded. “There is no credible evidence of guilt, and likewise there is substantial credible evidence to find these men are innocent.”
The report was the capstone of an investigation that included reviewing decades of documents, tracking down key witnesses, even reenacting the shooting at the still-extant crime scene. It is the work product of the unit’s director, Shelley Thibodeau, who ultimately helped draft the motion to free Clifford Williams and his nephew Nathan Myers, who called the day “historic.”
Judge Cox said based on the new evidence, “justice demands” that she vacate their sentences. Her order allowed the men to walk out of the courtroom on their way to freedom -- the first time they have been out of police custody since May 2, 1976.
Where they go from here is not clear. Melissa Nelson noted there is a statute that allows wrongfully convicted inmates to sue for compensation. “But obviously money is material, and does not restore what they’ve lost," she said.
Clifford Williams seemed overcome at times, weeping when the thought of all he’d missed with his six children. Myers often reached out to steady his uncle’s shoulder, or hug his neck.
In brief comments following the judge’s decision, Myers said he didn’t have any set plans. “I have very strong family ties. I want to strengthen my family. That’s what I want to do first thing. Everything else is second.”