DETROIT – After 14 years, Darrell Ewing saw the murder case against him dismissed and walked out of the Wayne County Jail, which brought screams and tears of joy from his family, who greeted him.
Ewing was convicted in 2009 of murdering a man in a drive-by shooting on Harper and Van Dyke avenues.
He always said he wasn’t responsible.
In the intervening years, multiple problems with his trial, including jury misconduct, have come to light. Numerous judges had said a new trial was needed, and on Monday (March 25), a judge dismissed the charges against him.
“They just want to solve a crime and get it off the books, but they’re not about getting it right,” said Ewing.
Ewing graduated from high school early with a 3.8 GPA and was on his way to Wayne State University when all this happened. While behind bars, he used his mind.
“This boy used to turn down visits from his mom some weekends because he said he needed to be in the law library,” said his father Rick Ewing.
Darrell became a paralegal in prison and has plans to go to law school now that he’s been released. He represented himself but had backup counsel as well.
“God is good. Justice has finally been served after 14 long years, two months, and 14 days. I’m great, I’m proud, and I’m happy to be home,” Darrell said.