Gurnee man freed after 1994 murder conviction tossed
WAUKEGAN, Ill. (AP) — A 58-year-old northern Illinois man who spent nearly half of his life behind bars after being found guilty of killing his ex-wife walked out of a prison Tuesday after a judge vacated his conviction.
Herman Williams of Gurnee was freed from the downstate Sheridan Correctional Center following nearly 29 years of incarceration after Lake County Judge Mark Levitt threw out his conviction for killing Penny Williams, whose body was found in a Waukegan pond on Sept. 26, 1993.
The Navy veteran’s exoneration came after work by his attorneys affiliated with the Illinois Innocence Project and then confirmed and acknowledged by the Lake County state’s attorney’s office.
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Herman Williams just after his release, arriving with his attorneys, Vanessa Potkin, director of special litigation for the Innocence Project, left, and Lauren Kaeseberg, co-director of the Illinois Innocence Project. (Image: Illinois Innocence Project) -
From left, Sonny Williams, father of Herman Williams; Lauren Kaeseberg, co-director of the Illinois Innocence Project; Herman Williams; Vanessa Potkin, director of special litigation for the Innocence Project; and Carolyn Lagendorf, Herman Williams’ sister. Both his father and sister traveled from Arizona to be there for Herman’s release. (Image: Illinois Innocence Project) -
Herman Williams realizing the reality of freedom by standing in a cornfield, reaching out to touch one of the plants, outside of Sheridan, Ill., where he was being held. (Image: Illinois Innocence Project) -
Carolyn Lagendorf, Herman Williams’ sister from Arizona, giving him a hearty hug. (Image: Illinois Innocence Project) -
Herman Williams with Illinois Innocence Project client Angel Gonzalez. Both men were convicted in Lake County and then later exonerated with DNA evidence as a key part of their cases. Angel was freed in March 2015 after serving nearly 21 years for a crime he did not commit. (Image: Illinois Innocence Project) -
Herman Williams with the attorneys who represented him, Vanessa Potkin, director of special litigation for the Innocence Project, left, and Lauren Kaeseberg, co-director of the Illinois Innocence Project. (Image: Illinois Innocence Project)
Innocence Project attorneys Lauren Kaeseberg and Vanessa Potkin argued Williams’ 1994 conviction was based on scientifically unsupported testimony regarding his ex-wife’s time of death. They also said new, advanced DNA testing did not find Williams’ DNA on key biological evidence.
Williams was convicted of murder after a jury trial in 1994. But, citing “scientifically unsupported evidence” presented during the trial, new DNA results, and failure to tender critical scientific material to the defense, Lake County prosecutors stated they no longer had any faith in the original verdict.
Prosecutors at the time argued Williams killed his ex-wife so he could take his children to California, where he was being restationed.
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