A woman who served 43 years in prison for a murder she did not commit has been freed after her conviction was quashed.
Sandra Hemme was just 20 years old when she was convicted of stabbing to death library worker Patricia Jeschke from St Joseph, Missouri, in November 1980. She was sentenced to life in prison.
According to a review of her case, there was no evidence linking her to the crime other than the confession she made while under heavy anesthesia at a psychiatric hospital.
Now 64, she is believed to be the longest-serving wrongly convicted woman in US history, according to her representative.
Her legal team at the Innocence Project said they were grateful that Ms Hemme had finally been reunited with her family and they would “continue to fight” to clear her name.
Although she is no longer in custody, her case is still under review.
District Court Judge Ryan Horsman The initial judgment was 118 pages long. Her conviction was overturned on June 14. The judgment said Hemme’s lawyers had clear evidence of her innocence, including evidence that her defense team did not provide at the time.
“This court finds that the totality of the evidence supports a verdict of actual innocence,” Judge Horsman concluded.
The review found local police had ignored evidence that pointed directly to one of their officers – Michael Holman – who later went to jail for another offence and died in 2015.
Holman’s truck was seen in the area on the day of the murder, his alibi could not be confirmed, and he used Patricia Jeschke’s credit card after claiming he found it in a ditch.
A pair of distinctive gold earrings identified by Ms Jeschke’s father were also found in Holman’s home.
None of this information was disclosed to Ms. Hemme’s defense team at the time, according to the review.
Ms Hemme was questioned by police several times while under the influence of antipsychotics and powerful sedatives after being involuntarily committed to a psychiatric hospital. She has been receiving psychiatric treatment on and off since she was 12.
Her responses were “monosyllabic” and she was “not fully aware of what was going on,” court documents show, and at times she could not even hold her head upright and suffered from muscle spasms — a side effect of the medication.
Judge Horsman’s review noted that there was no forensic evidence linking Ms Hemme to the murder. She had no motive and no witnesses linked her to the crime.
Sandra Hemme finally left prison on Friday, and Kansas City Star reported that she will live with her sister.
After her release, she reunited with her family in a nearby park, where she hugged her sister, daughter and niece.
Her father has been hospitalized and is receiving palliative care this week. Her legal team said she plans to visit him as soon as possible.
Defense attorney Sean O’Brien told the Star she still needs help because she has spent most of her life in prison and is not eligible for social security.
