‘It’s the best week’: 16 years after wrongful conviction, Minnesota man walks free

Edgar Barrientos-Quintana near a Minnesota situation a escaped antheral past week, 16 years aft helium was incarcerated for a crime helium didn’t commit.

Barrientos-Quintana was convicted successful 2009 and sentenced to beingness successful situation without parole for the 2008 drive-by-shooting and execution of Jesse Mickelson successful Minneapolis.

He had a twist of destiny earlier this year, however, erstwhile the state’s Conviction Review Unit took different look astatine his lawsuit and decided the assemblage successful his proceedings didn’t perceive cardinal grounds supporting his innocence.

On Tuesday, helium told reporters helium ne'er gave up anticipation that justness would beryllium served, though helium was ne'er definite erstwhile his state would come.

“I conscionable didn’t cognize when, and that’s the problem. You cognize it’s going to happen, but the system is truthful slow,” helium said astatine a quality conference, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune. “Happy to beryllium retired here. It’s the champion week and much to come.”

According to CNN, an August condemnation reappraisal resulted successful a damning study that recovered several faults successful the case against the 41-year-old begetter of two.

State tribunal Judge John McBride vacated Barrientos-Quintana’s condemnation and ordered his merchandise past week. McBride concluded that a just proceedings was not fixed to Barrientos-Quintana due to the fact that his lawyers did not efficaciously correspond him and prosecutors did not disclose each exculpatory evidence.

“Nothing tin springiness Mr. Barrientos-Quintana those 16 years back, and for that, we are truthful sorry,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said during a quality league Tuesday. “When the transgression strategy does not relation ethically, it causes important harm.”

At the property conference, Moriarty said investigators utilized coercive lineup tactics and interrogation tactics, resulting successful unreliable eyewitness identifications.

Security footage captured Barrientos-Quintana astatine a market store soon earlier the shooting, and the lawyer general’s bureau pointed to telephone records not presented astatine proceedings that placed him astatine his girlfriend’s suburban flat soon aft the shooting. The Conviction Review Unit determined that helium could not person traveled to and from the transgression country successful that time.

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The reviewers besides formed blasted connected police, who showed an aged photograph of Barrientos-Quintana with a shaved caput to eyewitnesses who had described the fishy arsenic being bald. Security footage showed Barrientos-Quintana had short, acheronian hairsbreadth astatine the clip of the shooting.

His merchandise comes 11 years aft his existent lawyer and erstwhile manager of the Great North Innocence Project, Julie Jonas, started working connected his case.

“He mislaid his state and his household mislaid a son, father, brother, uncle and nephew. It was a tragedy,” said Jonas successful a connection obtained by CNN.

“But watching Edgar reunite with implicit 22 of his household members arsenic helium near the prison, portion different inmates cheered for him successful the background, was a genuinely joyous infinitesimal for each of us.”

— with files from The Associated Press