USA (DELAWARE): RELEASED FROM PRISON AFTER 23 YEARS ON DEATH ROW

Jermaine Wright, 42, walked out of the death row in the maximum-security prison in Smyrna, Delaware, 24 years to the day after he was taken into custody following the 1991 killing of a liquor store clerk near Wilmington. Superior Court Judge John A. Parkins Jr. tossed out the videotaped confession in which Wright admitted to the killing of Phillip G. Seifert. The judge found that Wright was high on heroin during the confession, was acting bizarrely and was not properly read his rights. Following the judge's written ruling, prosecutors dismissed the charges against Wright, freeing him, so they could proceed with an appeal to the Delaware Supreme Court. If the appeal is successful, the charges would be reinstated, Deputy Attorney General Steve Wood said. Wright, who was 18 at the time, was convicted of shooting Seifert, 66, during a robbery, Jan. 14, 1991, at a liquor store. The shooting had no eyewitnesses, and the gun never was found. The state's case in the 1992 trial hinged on the videotaped confession that Wright gave to police following a 13-hour interrogation after being arrested on a different case. The Delaware Supreme Court overturned the conviction and death sentence last year. This allowed Wright's defense lawyers to file a motion to suppress the confession. "While the case is not over, today's ruling is a substantial step toward achieving justice for Mr. Wright," said one of Wright's lawyers, Herbert Mondros.