Desmond Ricks spent 25 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit before his conviction was overturned and he was released.
Following his exoneration, Ricks received more than $1 million under Michigan’s Wrongful Imprisonment Compensation Act. The law, which took effect in 2017, pays roughly $50,000 for each year someone is wrongfully incarcerated. The compensation is intended to acknowledge what exonerees lose while behind bars.
Ricks is one of 77 exonerees who have received compensation under the law as of July 2024. In total, Michigan has awarded nearly $52 million through these claims (1). But his attorney says no dollar amount could come close to repairing the damage…