In one of the most heartbreaking stories of justice denied, 71-year-old Glynn Simmons holds the record for the longest wrongful conviction in U.S. history. He was sentenced to death in 1975 for a crime he didn’t commit, despite clear evidence he was in another state. After 48 years, one month, and 18 days, Glynn proved his innocence. But even as he’s finally free, he now faces a new battle: stage 4 colon cancer.
On December 30, 1974, two men robbed a liquor store in Edmond, Oklahoma, fatally shooting the clerk and injuring a young customer named Belinda Brown. On that night, 21-year-old Glynn Simmons was 700 miles away in Harvey, Louisiana, spending time at a local pool hall. Many people saw him there and later testified to his alibi. Weeks later, after moving to Oklahoma to live with his aunt, Glynn was pulled into a series of police lineups. Belinda, the only surviving witness, initially said she didn’t remember much about the suspects. But after viewing eight separate lineups, she identified Glynn and another man, Don Roberts—who didn’t know each other and had never met before.
In June 1975, both men went on trial. Glynn and several witnesses testified that he was in Louisiana at the time of the crime, while Don’s family confirmed he was in Dallas. Yet both men were convicted and sentenced to death. In a twist of fate, Glynn’s original prosecutor wrote to the parole board in 1995 expressing doubts about Glynn’s guilt and sharing that the witness had reservations about her identification. Still, Glynn’s repeated bids for parole were denied.
Glynn never stopped fighting. In 2021, his attorneys uncovered that his original lawyer had failed to call critical alibi witnesses and got Glynn’s name wrong in front of the jury multiple times. The lawyer was later disbarred. Additionally, new evidence showed that Belinda Brown had identified four other people before she picked Glynn and that she never truly identified him and Don in a lineup—it was fabricated. In April 2023, the Oklahoma County District Attorney vacated Glynn’s conviction, and in December 2023, he received a declaration of actual innocence. However, Don Roberts, released on parole in 2008, has yet to see his conviction overturned.
A Heartbreaking Pattern of Wrongful Convictions
Since 1989, over 3,000 wrongfully convicted individuals have been exonerated, and more than half of them have been Black. This is no coincidence: Black people are disproportionately targeted, often facing injustice due to racial bias, flawed investigations, and a rush to convict. Glynn’s story sheds light on how broken systems and biases can destroy lives, robbing innocent people of decades. Today, Glynn’s freedom is bittersweet as he battles terminal cancer, but he remains a symbol of resilience and hope.
