Genarlow Wilson Freed

Radley Balko | June 11, 2007

A Georgia judge has finally injected some sanity into a clear injustice, and thrown out the 10-year sentence given to Genarlow Wilson. Wilson was convicted of receiving consensual oral sex from a 15-year-old girl while he was 17. The case generated a storm of publicity, including pleas for his clemency from sources ranging from ESPN: The Magazine (Wilson was a high school athlete) to the New York Times editorial board and former president Jimmy Carter.

Under the judge's ruling, Wilson's conviction will be reduced to a misdemeanor, and his sentence reduced to 12 months (he has already served two years). He also won't be required to register as a sex offender.

Now if only there were some accountability for the prosecutors who brought the ridiculous charges in the first place.

Wiki backgrounder here.