Freed man says he relied on mother, God while behind bars

A North Carolina man who maintained his innocence even as he served a life sentence for a murder he didn't commit was freed Thursday and said he got his strength in prison from God and his mother.

Dontae Sharpe went free after an evidentiary hearing Pitt County court in Greenville, where a judge ordered a new trial. Prosecutors then said they wouldn't seek a retrial, and the 44-year-old Sharpe was released within about an hour, said his attorney, Theresa Newman.

When asked in a phone interview how he maintained his determination to reject offers of a lighter sentence in exchange for a guilty plea, Sharpe said: "My faith, knowing I was innocent and the way I was raised. My momma always told me if you didn't do something, don't own up to it. Don't say you did it." He said his faith provided the "positivity to help me when I was around all that negativity."

Dontae Sharpe enters a Pitt County courtroom to the cheers of his family after a judge determined he could be set free on a $100,000 unsecured bond on Thursday, Aug. 22, 2019 in Greenville, N.C. Sharpe, a North Carolina man who maintained his innocence even as he served a life sentence for a murder he didn’t commit said Thursday that he got his strength in prison from God and his mother. (Deborah GriffinThe Daily Reflector via AP)

Sharpe was convicted of murder in 1995 in the death of 33-year-old George Radcliffe in a drug deal a year earlier. His repeated attempts to get a new trial failed, including a motion for appropriate relief that a judge rejected in 2016, Newman said.

The difference this time around was the testimony of former state medical examiner M.G.F. Gilliland, the attorney said. Gilliland testified at an evidentiary hearing in May that the state's theory of the shooting was not medically or scientifically possible. After that testimony, the judge ordered Thursday's hearing to hear more evidence.

"It was a too-long journey for Dontae Sharpe," said Newman, co-director of Duke University's Wrongful Convictions Clinic. "We can lament that at some point, but right now, it's a time of great joy to restore him to his family and his community."

Dontae Sharpe's mother, Sarah Blakley, hugs family and friends in celebration of a judge's ruling Thursday, Aug. 22, 2019 in Greenville, N.C. Sharpe, a North Carolina man who maintained his innocence even as he served a life sentence for a murder he didn’t commit said Thursday that he got his strength in prison from God and his mother. (Deborah GriffinThe Daily Reflector via AP)

Sharpe's mother, Sarah Blakely, kept his case in the spotlight with the help of the NAACP. Blakely said she was feeling joy and she was "relieved it's all over. Justice was served."

The Rev. William Barber, who was president of the state chapter of the NAACP when the organization took up Sharpe's case, said racism and poverty contributed to Sharpe's conviction despite the lack of physical evidence.

"It was the racism within the system that said basically, any black man will do," said Barber, who's now co-director of the president of Repairers of the Breach and co-chair of the Poor People's Campaign. And Sharpe's family couldn't afford the "powerhouse attorney" needed to fight the charge, he said.

Sharpe's conviction relied partially on the testimony of a woman who said she saw Sharpe kill Radcliffe. Charlene Johnson Frazier, who was 15 when she testified, later recanted. She testified again Thursday.

Gilliland also testified again Thursday, saying Radcliffe was shot in the side. His killer could not have been standing in front of him, as Frazier testified at Sharpe's trial, she said.

Sharpe said he plans to spend time with his family, including his daughter, two grandchildren and nieces and nephews. "I'm going to take a breath right now and gather myself," he said. "I'm feeling shocked a little bit."

Follow Martha Waggoner on Twitter at http://twitter.com/mjwaggonernc

WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. airstrike in Syria in May 2023 that was targeting an al-Qaida leader killed an innocent civilian instead, U.S. Central Command said Thursday, confirming early reports from residents and family members shortly after the attack.

U.S. Central Command said an investigation into the May 3 strike concluded that U.S. forces misidentified the intended al-Qaida target “and that a civilian, Mr. Lufti Hasan Masto, was struck and killed.”

Shortly after the drone strike, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor, said it had hit a chicken farm near the town of Harem, killing one person. And just days later, relatives and neighbors told The Associated Press that the person killed was a farmer who raised sheep, chickens and cattle and had no involvement with armed groups.

Masto’s brother, Mohamed Masto, said reports that his brother, 60, was involved with al-Qaida were “absolute lies” and his killing was “an injustice and an aggression.” Instead, Masto was simply tending his sheep when the strike hit.

Central Command said the investigation into the strike was completed last November — but it wasn't released publicly until Thursday.

In a statement, Central Command said much of the investigation and findings are classified but acknowledged it revealed “several issues that could be improved.”

“What we can share is the investigation concluded the strike was conducted in compliance with the law of armed conflict as well as Department of Defense and CENTCOM policies,” the statement said. “We are committed to learning from this incident and improving our targeting processes to mitigate potential civilian harm.”

The Defense Department has come under fire over the course of the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria for killing civilians in airstrikes. It set up a detailed investigation and review process for strikes when there are allegations of innocent people being killed.

The U.S. also continues to target al-Qaida and Islamic State leaders in Syria, including the 2017 airstrike that killed Abu al-Kheir al-Masri, a former aide to Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida’s second in command in Syria.

FILE - Mohammed Hassan Masto sits next to the grave of his brother Lutfi on May 7, 2023, in the village of Qorqanya, a rural area in northern Idlib province, Syria. Central Command said Thursday, May 2, 2024, an airstrike in Syria that was targeting an al-Qaida leader misidentified the intended target and killed Lutfi Hassan Masto instead. The investigation confirms early reports from residents and family members shortly after the attack. (AP Photo/Omar Albam, File)