Donations pour in for Missouri man freed after 43 years
Kevin Strickland, 62, managed a smile while talking to the media after his release from prison, Tuesday, Nov. 23,
2021, in Cameron, Mo. Strickland, who was jailed for more than 40 years for three murders, was released from
prison Tuesday after a judge ruled that he was wrongfully convicted in 1979. (Rich Sugg/The Kansas City Star via
AP)
RICH SUGG, Associated Press
ST. LOUIS -- The outpouring of support for Kevin Strickland, who was exonerated this week in a 1978 triple murder
he swore he did not commit, continued on Thanksgiving, as donations topped $1 million two days after he walked out
of prison.
Some people who gave to a GoFundMe page set up to support Strickland said their contributions were a way to
apologize for Missouri state officials who blocked his path to freedom despite overwhelming evidence of his
innocence.
"Our state leaders put their own self-interest and the politics of HATE before caring for people," wrote Gerri
McQueen, who gave $25. "I want to show them that `we the people care.'"
Aidan Schroeder, who donated $50, wrote, "I am so ashamed of the state I live in. Bless you, Mr. Strickland. I'm
so sorry for what you've been through and I hope you can know peace and a happier life."
James Hagerman, who gave $50, said, "I donated because Missouri Gov. Mike Parson is a cruel SOB! Kevin Strickland
should get $1 million for every year he was in prison."
Parson declined to grant Strickland's clemency requests even after Jackson County prosecutors declared in May 2021
that Strickland was "factually innocent" and should be freed immediately after 42 years of imprisonment.
Also standing in Strickland's way was Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, who maintained Strickland was guilty
and fought to keep him behind bars.
Strickland, 62, was released Tuesday from the Western Missouri Correctional Center in Cameron after a judge
granted Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker's motion to free him.
The GoFundMe page was set up in June by Tricia Rojo Bushnell, executive director of the Midwest Innocence Project,
to help pay for Strickland's housing and necessities when he was eventually freed. The original fundraising goal
was $7,500 -- "approximately $175 dollars for every year Mr. Strickland spent wrongfully convicted."
Even though Strickland was exonerated, under Missouri law he is ineligible to receive compensation for his
wrongful conviction. Because he has spent most of his life behind bars, he has no work history and won't be able
to get Social Security benefits.
By Tuesday evening, hours after Strickland's release, more than $200,000 had been raised, well in excess of the
original goal. But the donations continued, especially after Strickland's appearance Wednesday on CNN.
At 9 p.m. Thursday, donations totaled $1,001,570, but were continuing to climb.
Strickland's case was highlighted in a September 2020 investigation by Luke Nozicka of The Kansas City Star.
The newspaper interviewed two men who admitted guilt in the April 25, 1978 Kansas City triple murder and swore
Strickland was not with them and two other accomplices during the killing. The Star also reported that the lone
eyewitness to the murders, Cynthia Douglas, had told relatives she had wanted to recant. Douglas died in 2015.
Following the newspaper's report, Jackson County prosecutors began reviewing the conviction in November 2020, and
concluded Strickland was innocent and should be freed immediately.
Originally Posted by Anti Globalist
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