Ryan Ferguson, who was serving out a murder sentence in Missouri, was released on Tuesday night after spending nearly ten years serving time for a crime he claims he did not commit.

Ryan Ferguson Released

Ferguson, now 29, has fully maintained his innocence over the years. And last week, an appeals court threw out his conviction, citing the Boone County prosecutor’s failure to adhere to federal law – not sharing evidence with Ferguson’s defense team, reported the Columbia Daily Tribune.

"I didn't know this morning I'd be standing here tonight," Ferguson said. "It was very scary, very daunting. I'm very glad to be here. I want to thank the Attorney General for looking at the facts of the case and making decisions based off those facts and doing the right thing."

Ferguson Convicted Despite Lack Of Evidence

Ferguson was convicted of the murder of Columbia Daily Tribune sports editor Kent Heitholt in 2005. He’d been arrested for the 2001 murder in 2004 after Ferguson’s friend Chuck Erickson implicated him as well as himself in the slaying. Despite Erikson’s struggle to keep his facts straight under interrogation and the lack of evidence linking Ferguson to the scene of the crime, the teenager was convicted.

"I know what it is to be a teenager, I don't know what it is to be an adult in the real world, as nearly a 30-year-old," Ferguson said. "I look forward to finding myself out and learning what it is I enjoy and what I love about life and finding what my passion is and acting on it."

Ferguson left the Boone County jail with his parents, Bill and Leslie, on Tuesday evening. His parents, friends and many others have firmly stated all along that they believed he was not guilty of the crime for which he was convicted.

– Chelsea Regan

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