In Philadelphia, a man has been released from nearly four decades of imprisonment following a murder conviction related to a 1984 fire deemed arson by outdated standards, according to prosecutors.
Harold Staten, aged 71, was found guilty in 1986 of igniting a fire early one morning that claimed a man's life in a north Philadelphia row house in October 1984.
Authorities reported that four men escaped by leaping from second-floor windows, while Charles Harris succumbed to burns at a hospital. Staten was convicted of arson and second-degree murder, receiving a life sentence.
Carrie Wood, an Assistant District Attorney in Philadelphia's prosecutor's office conviction integrity unit, highlighted "significant changes in fire science" and a report from a former federal agent and fire investigator that led officials to conclude that "there is little credible information to uphold his murder conviction today."
As per The Philadelphia Inquirer, prosecutors recommended overturning the verdict on Monday, citing flawed science and contradictory testimony. Consequently, Common Pleas Court Judge Scott DiClaudio nullified Staten's 1986 guilty verdict and terminated his life sentence without the possibility of parole.
Staten, who has spent more than half his life incarcerated, broke down in tears upon the judge's decision, burying his face in his hands, as reported by the newspaper. His son, Harold DeBose, exclaimed "Alhamdulillah. Alhamdulillah," an Arabic expression meaning "Praise be to God."
DeBose, who was a teenager when his father was imprisoned, expressed his desire for his father to embrace his granddaughter and great-grandson upon his release on Monday night. He also aims to help his father acclimate to a world that has undergone significant changes during his decades-long confinement, according to the Inquirer.
The case was revisited by attorneys from the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, citing advancements in fire investigation technology. Prosecutors in Staten's original trial alleged that he started the fire following a dispute, but a chemical analysis of samples taken from the home later revealed no traces of accelerant.
District Attorney Larry Krasner stated in a release that "due to the passage of time, we unfortunately may never know how the fire began that claimed Charles Harris's life nearly four decades ago."
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