House committee advances resolutions to compensate four men exonerated by post-conviction reviews

A House committee on Friday advanced four separate House resolutions recommending compensation for men who were later exonerated after post-conviction reviews and investigations.

The resolutions, offered under LC numbers 60,053; 60,054; 60,052; and 60,051, respectively, would compensate Mario Stinchcomb, a man exonerated by the Fulton Conviction Integrity Unit; a co-defendant identified as Mr. Wolfolk; Daryl Lee Clark; and Joseph (Joey) Samuel Watkins. The committee chair, Chairman Dempsey, put each measure to a voice vote and members said “aye.”

Representative (unnamed A), who introduced two of the resolutions, described Mr. Stinchcomb’s case as one in which “physical evidence has always supported the testimony that the shooting was in self defense” and said the Fulton Conviction Integrity Unit later found a key witness who corroborated the self-defense claim. The presenter said Stinchcomb spent 18 years in prison before his exoneration.

Representative (unnamed A) also asked for favorable consideration of Mr. Wolfolk, describing him as a co-defendant in the same incident and noting he, too, was later exonerated by the Fulton Conviction Integrity Unit.

Representati…