I would be.  I'm sure it's a small consolation to get monetary compensation.  Another case where identification by the victims and witnesses was completely wrong.

Cleveland man to be freed from prison after serving 29 years for a rape he didn't commit

By Mark Puente, The Plain Dealer

May 04, 2010, 2:54PM

Raymond Towler

Updated: 4:17 p.m.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Raymond Towler will walk out of the Justice Center a free man Wednesday after serving 29 years in prison for a rape he didn't commit.

The 52-year-old man has been behind bars since Sept. 24, 1981. A recent DNA test proved his innocence -- the same innocence he has maintained since Cleveland Metroparks rangers arrested him in June 1981.

Cuyahoga County deputies picked up Towler on Tuesday at the Grafton Correctional Institution in Lorain County. He will appear before Judge Eileen A. Gallagher at 9 a.m. 

Towler released a statement to the Columbus Dispatch. The newspaper, along with the Ohio Innocence Project, took up Towler's case as one that should be reviewed given advances in DNA technology.

"This is the greatest day of my life," he said. "I prayed and hoped for all these years, and finally we have the truth. I'm only feeling pure joy no hate or anger toward anyone. I feel very sorry that the victim went through this, and I wish her nothing but the best. I certainly have no anger toward her."

Towler's brother, Clarence Settles, fought back tears Tuesday when talking about how much his brother has missed since being in prison. Both of their parents have died since 1981.

Settles grew irritated when talking about how prosecutors treated his brother.

"My brother has suffered an injustice," Settles said. "He was portrayed as a vagrant and a bum. He didn't commit any crime. Thank God, he is going to be a free man. My brother is a strong man. He fought this to the end."

In May 1981, an 11-year-old girl and her cousin, a 12-year-old boy, were walking with their bicycles in the Rocky River Reservation of Cleveland Metroparks. The rapist lured the children into the woods by asking them to help with an injured deer.

The man pulled a gun, forced the boy to the ground and sexually assaulted the girl.

Towler was arrested 13 days later when a ranger stopped him for a traffic violation in the park. The ranger noticed that Towler resembled a drawing of the rape suspect. The victims identified Towler in court. Two other people testified that they saw Towler in the park on the day of the attack.

A jury found Towler guilty. A judge sentenced him to life in prison for raping the girl plus an additional 12 to 40 years for crimes against the boy.

Towler testified during the 1981 trial he was at home at the time of the crime. After the jury returned its verdict, Assistant Prosecutor Allan Levenberg said, "Anyone who preys on children should be put away and the key lost. This man, an animal, got what he deserved --life!"

Levenberg has since died.

The Ohio legislature passed legislation in 2003 and 2006 that allowed prisoners to request state-paid DNA testing. The bills allowed inmates who had at least one year left on their sentences and who were not convicted with the use of DNA to apply for testing. Inmates who pleaded guilty or no contest were ineligible.

Towler's attorney in a subsequent appeal, John Parker, and prosecutors had the victim's underwear tested for DNA in 2004, but a lab could not identify any sperm on the clothing. The Ohio Innocence Project took the case in 2008 and, along with prosecutors, sent the clothing to another lab.

Scientific advances allowed for better testing of the biological evidence. The 2008 test discovered DNA from two males but could not exclude Towler as a suspect.

The clothing sample was sent to a Texas lab for more advanced testing. The facility recently found a DNA profile in sperm cells that excluded Towler as the rapist. The lab notified prosecutors Monday night.

Prosecutors have asked the lab for additional tests so a DNA profile can be entered into a law enforcement database, First Assistant Prosecutor Mike O'Malley said.

"The rapist is still out there," he said.

Mason's office and the Ohio Innocence Project filed a motion Tuesday, asking Gallagher to free Towler.

He was featured two years ago in a Columbus Dispatch series that exposed flaws in the DNA testing system. The Ohio Innocence Project and newspaper reviewed more than 300 cases with and then highlighted 30 inmates as candidates for DNA testing.

Mark Godsey, a law professor and director of the Ohio Innocence Project, praised prosecutors for having the additional testing done.

Towler, Godsey said, has inspired him by the way he has maintained his innocence. Towler is not bitter and is a spiritual person who wants to do good everyday.

"It's a long time coming," Godsey said. "It's been incredible."

Plain Dealer news researcher JoEllen Corrigan contributed to this story.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: mpuente@plaind.com, 216-999-4141