Missouri authorities released a woman who served 43 years of a life sentence Friday despite the opposition of Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey of Missouri, according to multiple reports.
Sandra Hemme was convicted of murdering Patricia Jeschke, a library worker from St. Joseph, Missouri, in 1981 and sentenced to life in prison, the Associated Press reported. The Missouri Supreme Court cleared the way for Hemme’s release Thursday, upholding rulings from lower courts that found Hemme’s confessions to the crime were “unreliable and false,” according to the New York Times.
BREAKING: Sandra Hemme is finally free after 43 years.
Read more: https://t.co/vNGWIkz72d pic.twitter.com/4vwSxRM1nl
— Innocence Project (@innocence) July 20, 2024
Livingston County Presiding Judge Ryan Horsman overturned Hemme’s verdict in a June 14 decision, but Bailey’s office argued that Hemme needed to serve 12 years for a pair of assault convictions from her time in prison, one against a fellow inmate and another against a correctional officer, the AP reported.
“Exculpatory evidence was not disclosed to Ms. Hemme that was material to the outcome of her case and that she can show cause-and-prejudice for not having discovered her Brady v. Maryland claim earlier,” Horsman wrote. “Ms. Hemme has thus established a gateway claim of innocence that overcomes any alleged procedural default related to the ineffective assistance of counsel she received at her trial. Ms. Hemme has also established evidence supporting a freestanding claim of actual innocence.”
“She is the victim of a manifest injustice,” Horsman wrote.
Bailey also reportedly ordered staff at the prison Hemme was held not to release her, but the staff did after Horman threatened to hold Bailey in contempt, according to the AP.
A statement from the Innocence Project, which represented Hemme, claimed the St. Joseph Police “hid evidence implicating one of their own,” saying a police officer with the department had Jeschke’s earrings and that his truck was near the murder victim’s home.
All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.
DONATE TO BIZPAC REVIEW
Please help us! If you are fed up with letting radical big tech execs, phony fact-checkers, tyrannical liberals and a lying mainstream media have unprecedented power over your news please consider making a donation to BPR to help us fight them. Now is the time. Truth has never been more critical!
- Police chief who groveled after discussing ‘East African crime’ panders to Somalis again - December 17, 2025
- Ilhan Omar whines about ICE operations in Minneapolis - December 17, 2025
- ‘It’s all bullsh*t’: Tim Walz goes on anti-Second Amendment rant - December 17, 2025
Comment
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.
BPR INSIDER COMMENTS
Scroll down for non-member comments or join our insider conversations by becoming a member. We'd love to have you!
