‘A free man’: Man who spent 30 years in prison released 2 years after conviction overturned

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — Crosley Green spent 30 years in prison for murder for a crime he insists he didn’t commit.

Green walked out of prison on Monday, two years after his conviction was overturned.

READ: ‘It’s frustrating’: Legislation making it easier to remove problematic HOAs stalls in Tallahassee

“First of all, I want to thank God,” Green said Thursday. “I want to thank God I’m standing here as a free man. I want to thank my lawyers for making it possible.”

Green’s attorneys have been fighting for his freedom since they met him on death row a decade ago.

READ: Stimulus update: Veterans to get checks next week; ‘plus-up’ payments going out now

In 1990, Green was convicted and sentenced to death for the 1989 first-degree murder of Charles “Chip” Flynn, who was shot to death in Mims.

Green’s attorneys said there was no direct evidence tying Green to the crime, and in 2018, Green’s conviction was overturned, and he won a request for a new trial.

READ: DeSantis announces lawsuit against CDC, federal government demanding cruises be able to sail

The state appealed that decision as Green waited in prison, but on Wednesday a judge decided that with Green’s conviction overturned, and due to COVID-19 concerns, 63-year-old Green could go home and wait on the court’s decision at home with his family.