"He spent twenty-five years in prison for a crime he did not commit. He lost his wife, his son, and his freedom. This is the story of how Michael Morton finally got justice--and a second chance at life. On August 13, 1986, just one day after his thirty-second birthday, Michael Morton went to work at his usual time. By the end of the day, his wife Christine had been savagely bludgeoned to death in the couple's bed--and the Williamson County Sherriff's office in Texas wasted no time in pinning her murder on Michael, despite an absolute lack of physical evidence. Michael was swiftly sentenced to life in prison for a crime he had not committed. He mourned his wife from a prison cell. He lost all contact with their son. Life, as he knew it, was over. It would take twenty-five years--and thousands of hours of effort on the part of Michael's lawyers, including the team at the New York-based Innocence Project--before DNA evidence was brought to light that would ultimately set Michael free. The evidence had been collected only days after the murder--but was never investigated. Drawing on his recollections, court transcripts, and more than one thousand pages of personal journals he wrote in prison, Michael recounts the hidden police reports about an unidentified van parked near his house that were never pursued; the treasure trove of evidence, including a bandana with the killer's DNA on it, that was never introduced in court; the call from a neighboring county reporting the attempted use of his wife's credit card (a message that was received, recorded, and never returned by local police); and ultimately, how he battled his way through the darkness to become a free man once again. Getting Life is an extraordinary story of unfathomable tragedy, grave injustice, and the strength and courage it takes to find forgiveness"-- Provided by publisher. "On August 13, 1986, the day after his thirty-second birthday, Michael Morton left work to pick up his three-year-old son Eric from the babysitter. When he arrived, the sitter told him Michael's wife, Chris, had never dropped their boy off. He knew instantly something was wrong--and when he called his home line and a sheriff answered the phone, he knew it was worse than he could have imagined. Eric was safe, but Chris Morton had been beaten to death in the couple's bed. The Williamson County Sherriff's office wasted no time in pinning her murder on Michael, despite having absolutely no physical evidence that he had committed the crime--and indeed, as would be revealed nearly a quarter century later in court transcripts, despite Eric's insistence that "Daddy wasn't there" and a narration of details of the crime he could only have known through first-hand witness. The sheriff and district attorney in Michael's case never shared that transcript with the defense or, more importantly, the jury. GETTING LIFE is a sensational story of murder, injustice, and twenty-five years spent behind bars before Michael Morton was released on October 4, 2011 on the basis of exculpatory physical evidence of the real killer's guilt, which had been in the evidence locker the whole time and known to the prosecuting attorneys"-- Provided by publisher.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.