Alan Hall was only 24 years old when he was arrested in 1986 and sentenced to life in jail for murder.

A man in New Zealand who spent 19 years in jail for a murder he did not commit will receive $3 million as compensation, according to the government. Alan Hall was only 24 years old when he was arrested in 1986 and sentenced to life in jail after a man was stabbed dead by an intruder in Auckland. Although there was no forensic evidence linking Hall to the murder, he was found guilty. Last week, New Zealands’ Supreme Court Justice Minister Deborah Russell said that the initial trial showed "extreme incompetence" or "a deliberate and wrongful strategy to secure conviction." Russell said that the court accepted an offer of NZ$4.9 million ($3 million) compensation for Hall, and that the New Zealand government "apologises unreservedly for his wrongful convictions and imprisonment". "I acknowledge that the apology and compensation can never completely remedy the injustice Hall has suffered," Russell added. Hall's family, in a statement to media, said they were relieved that his name has been cleared. "Alan can now focus on what was denied to him for decades, building his life as a free man," his family said. Stuff news website, which has followed Hall's case, said: "Alan Hall spent 19 years in jail for a murder he didn't commit but the authorities repeatedly refused to acknowledge a terrible mistake had been made." The media outfit accused detectives of "tampering with evidence to convict Hall." "They grilled Hall, who had an intellectual disability, for 23 hours without a lawyer. They hid crucial evidence from the jury," Stuff reported. Hall and his family had spent four decades trying to clear his name. He was released on parole in 1994, but was sent back to jail in 2012 for breaching the conditions of his release. Last year, he was finally released from jail and acquitted of murder. ICA/Expat Media
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