Leroy McGee has found out the hard way how much his life is worth.
The 42-year-old Fort Lauderdale man who spent over three and a half years in prison after being wrongfully convicted is set to receive $179,000, or rouighly $50,000 per year behind bars, according to the Sun-Sentinel.
McGee's payout is through the Florida Victims of Wrongful Incarceration Compensation Act, enacted in 2008.
McGee was convicted in 1991 of robbing a gas station, despite his presence at work and the fact that he didn't meet the description of the robber. His lawyer, who has since been disbarred, raised no objections throughout his trial, and the judge who sentenced him said he'd "never witnessed a more tragic set of circumstances."
For the father of five children, receiving the cash compensation will be bittersweet.
"I lost my wife. I lost the place I had. I lost time with my kids," McGee told the Sun-Sentinel. "When I got out I had to work so many jobs my kids were thinking I didn't want to be with them. It wasn't like that."
McGee waited over a year to sign the papers that would give him the money, because he felt the state should also pay his legal bills.
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"I still want to fight the fight," he said. "If you are willing to pay knowing I didn't do this crime, why wouldn't you pay the legal fees also?"
