DURHAM, N.C. – A Durham judge threw out a 1995 double-murder conviction Wednesday for Darryl Howard.
The 54-year-old was sentenced to 80 years in prison for the 1991 murders of a mother and daughter but the judge said Howard’s defense had proven there was reasonable doubt Howard committed the crimes.
Howard was released from prison Wednesday.
Howard maintained his innocence during his 21 years in prison.
Two years ago, a judge threw out Howard’s 1995 conviction for the 1991 murder of a mother and her 13-year-old daughter and arson of their home but an appeals court ruled a new hearing was needed. He remains imprisoned.
The hearing started Monday.
Superior Court Judge Orlando Hudson said in 2014 he remembered observing Howard’s murder trial as it was under way. He called it “a horrendous prosecution” that ignored that “there was extremely credible, strong evidence that Mr. Howard did not commit” the crime.
The case was tried by then Assistant District Attorney Mike Nifong, who was later disbarred and held in contempt for his actions in the Duke Lacrosse case.
Howard’s attorney claimed the jury at the time did not know about evidence that implicated another man.
“There is no physical evidence against him. There’s no hair, there’s no DNA, there are no fingerprints anywhere. There is no property from the apartment that was found on Mr. Howard. There is no evidence Mr. Howard was even in the apartment,” said attorney James Cooney.
Durham prosecutors had asked the judge to uphold the conviction, pointing to witnesses who place Howard at the scene.
