Lawmaker Wants Nearly $2 Million For Wrongly Imprisoned Man

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TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/NSF) - More than 40 years ago, Barney Brown was convicted of rape in Miami-Dade County.

This week state Rep. Gwyn Clarke-Reed of Deerfield Beach filed a bill seeking $1.9 million in compensation for Brown because of wrongful incarceration.

Clarke-Reed's bill mirrors a proposal filed in July by Sen. Dwight Bullard of Miami.

Brown served 38 years in prison before a circuit judge vacated the conviction in 2008 because "significant doubt existed as to his guilt,'' the House bill said. In proposing the $1.9 million for Brown, the bill said it is "based on a moral desire to acknowledge those who are wrongfully convicted of a felony offense, incarcerated as a result of that conviction, and determined to be actually innocent."

The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.

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