GREENSBORO — A North Carolina man who was wrongfully convicted for murder and imprisoned for 17 years has died.
The Innocence Project, a Duke University legal program that helped gain LaMonte Armstrong's freedom, confirmed in a Friday post that Armstrong had died at 69. It did not list a cause of death.
Armstrong was convicted seven years after the 1988 killing of Ernestine Compton, but won his freedom in 2012 when evidence emerged showing he was not involved.
News outlets report flawed police work may have led to the false conviction. In 2013, Armstrong was issued a state "pardon of innocence" and paid $750,000. He later won $6.42 million from the city of Greensboro.
News outlets report Armstrong was a founding member of a nonprofit group to help "all harmed by wrongful convictions."
