A man who spent almost 40 years behind bars for a murder that he didn't commit has spoken about his thoughts on freedom.
American exoneree Robert DuBoise was wrongfully convicted for the murder of a 19-year-old in Tampa, Florida, when he was just 18.
The prosecutor built a case on words and an apparent bite mark on the victim's cheek, as there were no eyewitnesses - a dentist then said that the mark matched Robert's teeth, and he was sentenced to death.
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He spent 37 years on Florida’s death row following the 'sensational' murder trial, but was saved after DNA evidence was found in a different cold-case, helping investigators identify at least one serial killer, freeing Robert.
Though the state of Florida usually pays exonerees money for their time in prison, Robert had to fight for the money when he walked free in 2020 due to its 'clean hands rule'.
Just under two weeks ago, Robert and Tampa Bay journalists Christopher Spata and Dan Sullivan took to Reddit, to give members of the public a chance to ask the exoneree what they wanted about his experiences.
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One user asked him about how angry he was that he was wrongfully convicted, and Robert replied: "I don’t let anger control my life or my mind like that. I chose not to be bitter. I don’t want to hate anybody, and I don’t."
However, another user came up with a different sort of question, writing: "This is a sillier question compared to the others, but what was the first thing you wanted to eat or go do for fun (aside from visit family members and the like) once you got out?"
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The now 59-year-old exoneree answered: "I focused so many years on proving my innocence that I never thought about it. My dream had always been to have a wife and kids, but when I got older, I recalculated."
Robert said that all he thought about was how to prove his innocence, so he couldn't think about fun.
"I had to live in a serious environment for all those years, I never thought about fun, it was basically survival," he added, revealing the harsh reality of prison.
As well as this admission, Robert revealed that the technological change that affected him the most after coming out was the smartphone.
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Amazed at its capabilities, he said that he stayed up for his first few nights with one, but struggled to answer it as he had no idea how to 'slide' to answer, calling it all 'overwhelming at first'.
Robert also explained that 'after the third parole hearing that was denied', he accepted that he might die in prison, but wanted 'the truth to come out at some point', for the benefit of his family.
Topics: Death Row, Crime, Reddit, Social Media
Joshua Nair