Michael Smith

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Charge:	Murder
Sentence:	Life Imprisonment without possibility of parole
Years Imprisoned:	17.08
Year Crime:	1992
Year Convicted:	1994
Year Cleared:	2009
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	California
County or Region of Crime:	Los Angeles
City of Crime:	Los Angeles
Result:	Judicially Exonerated Released
Summary of Case:	"Michael Smith and Timothy Gantt were codefendants wrongly convicted on May 25, 1994 of a murder committed in 1992 in Los Angeles, California. Gantt and Smith were sentenced to life in prison without parole. Gantt's conviction was overturned and he was released on June 5, 2008. Smith's conviction was overturned and he was released on November 2, 2009. Gantt and Smith submitted claims for compensation with the California Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board, which the Hearing Officer recommended to be rejected. On October 15, 2015 the Board rejected the recommendation, and awarded Timothy Gantt $512,600 and Michael Smith $564,100, under the state's wrongful imprisonment statute that authorized payment of $100 per day for the 5,126 days and 5,641 days that Gantt and Smith were respectively incarcerated in a state prison. Smith and Gantt filed a federal civil rights lawsuit that named the City of Los Angeles as a defendant, but after a trial in 2010, the jury didn't award them any damages."
Conviction Caused By:
Innocence Proved By:
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Compensation Awarded:	"$564,100 (State of California, Oct. 15, 2015)"
Was Perpetrator Identified?
Age When Imprisoned:	32
Age When Released:	49
Sex:	Male
Skin/Ethnicity:	Black
Information Source 1:	"In the Matter of the Claims of Timothy Gantt and Michael Smith, Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board of the State of California, October 15, 2015 (Notice of Decision)"
Information Location 1:	http://www.vcgcb.ca.gov/docs/pc4900/PC-4900-Approved-Gantt-Smith.pdf
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Michael Smith

Charge:

Murder

Sentence:

Life Imprisonment without possibility of parole

Years Imprisoned:

17.08

Year Crime:

1992

Year Convicted:

1994

Year Cleared:

2009

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

California

County or Region of Crime:

Los Angeles

City of Crime:

Los Angeles

Result:

Judicially Exonerated Released

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Innocence Proved By:

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

"$564,100 (State of California, Oct. 15, 2015)"

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

32

Age When Released:

49

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Black

Information Source 1:

"In the Matter of the Claims of Timothy Gantt and Michael Smith, Victim Compensation and Government Claims Board of the State of California, October 15, 2015 (Notice of Decision)"

Information Location 1:

http://www.vcgcb.ca.gov/docs/pc4900/PC-4900-Approved-Gantt-Smith.pdf

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