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In a landmark ruling, a judge has overturned the wrongful conviction of Sandra Hemme. The Missouri woman spent 43 years in prison for a crime she did not commit. Hemme was a psychiatric patient when she incriminated herself in a 1980 killing. 

She was exonerated after her attorneys presented compelling evidence suggesting that a now-deceased police officer was the true killer.

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Wrongful Conviction

Larry Harman, who played a crucial role in getting Hemme's initial guilty plea thrown out and later became a judge, remarked in the petition, "The system failed her at every opportunity." 

Judge Ryan Horsman ruled on Friday that Hemme had established evidence of actual innocence. The judge ordered her release within 30 days unless prosecutors decide to retry her. The court found that Hemme’s trial counsel was ineffective and that prosecutors failed to disclose evidence implicating another suspect.

A Historic Injustice

Hemme's 43-year imprisonment marks the longest time a woman has been incarcerated for a wrongful conviction in the United States. Her attorneys filed a motion seeking her immediate release, expressing gratitude to the court for acknowledging the severe injustice Hemme had suffered for over four decades.

“We are grateful to the Court for acknowledging the grave injustice Ms. Hemme has endured for more than four decades,” her attorneys said in a statement. They vowed to continue their efforts to have the charges dismissed and to reunite Hemme with her family.

The Crime

The tragic events began on November 13, 1980, when Patricia Jeschke failed to show up for work. Her worried mother discovered her daughter's body in her apartment, surrounded by blood. Jeschke's hands were tied behind her back with a telephone cord, and a pair of pantyhose was wrapped around her neck. A knife was found under her head.

The brutal nature of the killing captured public attention, and detectives worked tirelessly to solve the case. Hemme, however, was not initially a suspect.

Hemme Becomes a Suspect

Nearly two weeks after the murder, Hemme appeared at the home of a nurse who had previously treated her, carrying a knife and refusing to leave. Police found her in a closet and took her back to St. Joseph’s Hospital, where she had been a patient numerous time.

Hemme, then 20 years old, was targeted by the police, her attorneys say, she was undergoing treatment for drug usage, de-realization, and auditory hallucinations. Since the age of 12 she had been receiving inpatient mental health care.

She had been discharged from the hospital the day before Jeschke's body was found and had hitchhiked more than 100 miles to her parents' house that night. Her presence near the time and location of the crime seemed suspicious to law enforcement.

During interrogations, Hemme was heavily sedated and shackled in leather wrist restraints. She was so mentally confused and physically incapacitated by antipsychotic drugs that she could barely articulate responses to the police's questions.

The Interrogation

According to her lawyers from the Innocence Project, Hemme’s statements to the police were inconsistent and heavily influenced by the detectives' suggestions. 

Despite her mental confusion, she eventually claimed to have witnessed a man named Joseph Wabski kill Jeschke. Wabski was charged with capital murder, but the case was dropped when it was confirmed he had an ironclad alibi. He was in an alcohol treatment center in Kansas at the time of the murder.

When it was clear Wabski could not have committed the crime, Hemme, under immense pressure, confessed to being the sole killer.

 Her attorneys allege that authorities ignored her "wildly contradictory" statements and suppressed evidence implicating Michael Holman, a police officer who had possession of some of the victim’s possessions.

A Guilty Plea

Desperate and worn down, Hemme wrote to her parents on Christmas Day 1980, expressing her willingness to plead guilty despite her innocence.

 In the spring of 1981, she did just that, to avoid the death penalty. However, her plea was initially rejected by the judge due to her inability to provide coherent details about the crime. After a recess and some coaching by the prosecution, her guilty plea was accepted.

This plea was later overturned on appeal, but Hemme was convicted again in a 1985 trial where jurors were not informed about her coerced interrogations.

Evidence Against the Real Killer

Early in the investigation, police suspected Holman, a fellow officer. Holman was arrested for falsely reporting his truck stolen. This was the same vehicle seen near the crime scene.

 His alibi could not be confirmed, and he had attempted to use Jeschke's credit card on the day her body was found. During a search of Holman's home, police found jewelry linked to Jeschke. The investigation into Holman was abruptly halted, after a few days. Crucial details pointing to his guilt were never shared with Hemme's defense team.

Judge Horsman concluded that the evidence overwhelmingly pointed to Holman as the true killer. He went on to detail the severe miscarriages of justice that led to Hemme's wrongful conviction.