CLEVELAND (AP) - A judge in Cleveland has vacated a 2003 murder conviction and set a man free after prosecutors and defense attorneys agreed he wasn’t involved in the slaying.
The judge on Wednesday found 38-year-old Ru-El Sailor guilty of perjury and obstruction charges and sentenced him to time served. Sailor spent 15 years in prison.
No physical evidence was ever found connecting Sailor to the fatal shooting of Omar Clark during a confrontation in November 2002 over a marijuana cigarette laced with PCP.
An appeals court upheld Sailor’s conviction despite a witness declaring at his own sentencing that Sailor was innocent.
Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley said during his 2016 campaign he’d review Sailor’s case if elected. Sailor was represented by Cleveland attorney Kimberly Corral and the Ohio Innocence Project’s Jennifer Bergeron.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.