Alabama Inmate To Go Free After 30 Years On Death Row

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — A man who spent 30 years on Alabama's death row will go free after a decades long fight to prove his innocence.

Fifty-eight-year-old Ray Hinton will be released Friday morning.

Hinton was convicted of the 1985 murders of two Birmingham fast food restaurant managers. However, prosecutors say modern forensic methods failed to show that fatal bullets came from Hinton's revolver. The bullets were the only evidence linking Hinton to the killings.

Lawyer Bryan Stevenson said Hinton wept after learning he would finally be released.

The U.S. Supreme Court last year ruled that Hinton had inadequate counsel and sent the case back for a second trial. Prosecutors moved to dismiss the case following the testing on the bullets.

Hinton was one of the longest-serving inmates on Alabama's death row.