Roosevelt Myles prepares for freedom as court reverses dismissal of appeal by wrongfully convicted man

He has spent 28 years in jail for a murder that he did not commit.

The 20-page ruling from the First Appellate Court of Illinois First Judicial District concluded that Judge Porter was wrong when he dismissed Myles’ appeal in 2019 as he agreed with Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s office.

After delaying his decision three times, Judge Porter disagreed and dismissed Myles’ appeal, saying it had no merit and there was nothing new that would have changed the outcome of his murder trial.

The appeals court also disagreed with Judge Porter and the State’s Attorney’s Office, which argued that Morris’ recanting her testimony is nothing new because she made a similar typewritten statement to the defense investigator, Richard English, which was published at trial.

The ruling and Morris’ sworn confession leave the State’s Attorney’s Office with little to keep Myles’ conviction intact.