Death Row Inmate Freed After 29 Years As Case Is Re-Examined: NBC News

Barry Lee Jones, an Arizona death row inmate convicted in the 1994 death of a 4-year-old girl, was released from prison on Thursday after spending 29 years behind bars, NBC News reports.

Convictions Thrown Out: Jones’ convictions for murder, child abuse, and sexual assault were thrown out after a Pima County judge approved a deal between his defense team and prosecutors. The deal followed a medical re-examination of the case that did not support the finding that Jones caused the girl’s fatal injury.

Case Background: Jones was accused of beating and sexually assaulting his girlfriend’s daughter in 1994. The Arizona Attorney General’s Office agreed that Jones’ first-degree murder conviction should be overturned but maintained that evidence supported a second-degree murder conviction due to Jones’ failure to seek medical care for the child.

Legal Proceedings: A federal judge called for Jones’ release in 2018, citing inadequate investigation by Jones’ earlier lawyer into the timing of the girl’s injuries. However, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed this decision in 2022. Jones’ attorneys subsequently struck a deal with prosecutors for his release.

Release and Future: Under the agreement, Jones pleaded guilty to a second-degree murder charge related to his failure to seek medical care for the girl. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison, with credit for time served. Jones’ attorney, Cary Sandman, maintains that Jones did not sexually assault the child.

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