Woman who wrongly spent 13 years behind bars for murder graduates top of class
A woman who spent 13 years in prison over charges including murder celebrated her graduation at the top of her college class one year after release, marking a new chapter in her life.
Scholar Michelle Morrison's case is often described as "wrong place, wrong time." She spent 13 years in prison after a jury determined the woman guilty of a murder she didn't commit. From then on, she was branded a felon.
"To see people judge me by those labels, it hurt bad," she said. Michelle decided to explore academics in prison and eventually earned her college degree behind bars. It wouldn't be a year until her family could witness Michelle proudly walk across the stage of Life University.
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Prosecutors alleged that Michelle was complicit in the murder of Keith Brown (11Alive/Youtube)"I feel honoured now. I put away the shame, anything that I had negative feelings, and I feel great to walk across that stage," Michelle said.
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In 2007, Prosecutors alleged that Michelle, believed to be a sex worker at the time, was complicit in an armed robbery in the form of a getaway driver. Upon her imminent arrest, the college grad told police she thought her friend was just collecting a debt.
Michelle was sentenced to life in prison with an additional five years (11Alive/Youtube)Reports stated the robbery went south, leading to the gunman blindly firing into the apartment of Keith Brown, who he believed was in possession of at least $40,000. The money was later recovered by someone else. The gunshots spooked Michelle who promptly took off in her car.
Michelle's attorney said the alleged getaway driver was offered a plea deal for a five-year prison sentence on an attempted robbery charge but refused because it didn't make sense to her.
Michelle graduated at the top of her class (11Alive/Youtube)At trial, she and a co-defendant were convicted of several harsher crimes, resulting in a life sentence with five years tacked on. Michelle and co-defendant Jeff Dulcio have spent years fighting their convictions to no avail, according to Law & Crime.
In a drastic turn of events, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who's pursuing the criminal conviction of former president Donald Trump over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, decided to look into Michelle's case. The DA's Conviction Integrity Unit eventually agreed with Michelle that her sentence was unjust, leading to a re-sentencing hearing in July 2021.
She was charged with only one count of attempted armed robbery, resembling the initial plea agreement she refused years earlier. Michelle obviously spent well over five years in prison, so she was released on parole in August 2022.
“It feels great, it feels amazing,” Michelle exclaimed at the time. “Words can’t even explain how I feel. I’m just grateful. I made it through, came out strong and I am ready to hit the world.”
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