A Black Minnesota man was released from prison following a parole board’s decision to commute his life sentence after a legal panel discovered errors in the initial investigation.
Myon Burrell, who was sentenced to life in prison for the 2002 murder of an 11-year-old, was released from a Minneapolis prison Tuesday, according to ABC-13 Houston, following the pardon board’s decision to commute his sentence.
The pardon board of the state commuted his sentence to 20 years in prison, according to KARE-11, under a proposal by Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, although a pardon request was denied. Mr. Burrell is expected to serve the last two years of his sentence under supervised release.
The crowd, as reported by ABC-13, had dozens of supporters with some holding signs while chanting, “Myon’s free! Myon’s free!”
Myon Burrell was released from a state prison on Tuesday after the Minnesota Board of Pardons commuted his life sentence in a murder case that angered advocates of criminal justice reform and hampered Senator Amy Klobuchar’s presidential campaign.https://t.co/TqdrteKLP8
— The New York Times (@nytimes) December 16, 2020
Mr. Burrell was serving a life sentence for his role in the death of 11-year-old Tyesha Edwards, who was struck with a stray bullet while doing her homework with her little sister.
An Associated Press report earlier this year found new evidence that suggested that the police investigation had “serious flaws.” (RELATED: New Body Cam Footage Reveals Important Details In Ahmaud Arbery Shooting)
A legal panel that looked into the case after the AP report released their findings last week, calling for Mr. Burrell to be released after questions were raised regarding eyewitness accounts and uninvestigated alibis.
“The panel believes that no purpose is served by Burrell’s continuing incarceration,” the report read, “and no negative fact overwhelms the imperative of freedom.”
Protests for Mr. Burrell occurred at Amy Klobuchar’s rally in March by Black Lives Matter supporters, in which Klobuchar was the chief prosecutor in the county where the case took place.