Gov. Mike Easley pardoned Darryl Eugene Hunt, who was...

Gov. Mike Easley pardoned Darryl Eugene Hunt, who was cleared on February 6 (see) of a 1984 murder on the strength of DNA evidence that implicated someone else. The "pardon of innocence" closes the criminal case. With the pardon, Hunt can now seek about $360,000 from the state -- $20,000 compensation for each year he spent in prison. This is the 2nd pardon Easley has granted since he became governor in January 2001. On Feb. 9, 2001, he pardoned Lesly Jean, a former Marine convicted of rape in 1982. DNA testing also led to Jean's exoneration. Advocates for people on death row could not remember the last time a North Carolina governor pardoned a wrongfully convicted murderer.