Man Released After Nearly 30 Years in Prison

Greensboro, North Carolina – A 47-year-old man, Benjamin Cole, who spent almost three decades in prison, has finally returned home after a judge annulled his first-degree murder conviction. This decision came about as part of a plea deal, according to a release from Duke University’s School of Law’s Illegal Conviction Clinic.

Cole was originally convicted for the 1998 murder of Calvin Jenkins, who was shot during a robbery in an apartment in Greensboro. Throughout the trial, Cole maintained his innocence, claiming he was actually in Ohio when the murder occurred.

“I’m innocent and I just want to go home,” he expressed.

On Wednesday, Cole had his conviction nullified as part of an Alford plea, which allowed him to plead guilty to a reduced charge of second-degree murder while still asserting his innocence.

After his release from Guilford County court, he was reunited with his mother—an emotional moment for both.

In 2021, Cole filed a lawsuit regarding his case. Jamie Lau, the supervising lawyer and clinical law professor from Duke, mentioned that upon reviewing the case, it was found that the defense did not have access to the police investigation files.

Once these files were finally obtained, they included records that supported Cole’s alibi, confirming he was in Ohio during the crime.

Furthermore, the legal team, which included Robin Sanders and members from Troutman Pepper, filed a post-conviction complaint to address Cole’s wrongful conviction. They revealed that a former state witness initially identified Cole in a lineup among possibly over a thousand photos, but later changed her testimony after hearing him speak.

Lau noted that Cole spoke with a Jamaican accent, while witnesses stated that the suspect did not share this characteristic.

During a May hearing, two witnesses testified that the perpetrator did not have a Jamaican accent, further supporting Cole’s claim of innocence. Lau emphasized that there was no physical evidence linking Cole to the crime, other than the testimonies of these witnesses.

“Of course we believe he should have been completely exonerated, but today is a day to celebrate Cole’s freedom and rejoice in the fact that he is back to where he belongs,” Lau said, reflecting the bittersweet nature of the moment.