DNA tests vindicate US man convicted of rape
Raymond Towler
He walked from the courthouse  arms around his family members  amid the smell of freshly cut grass  blooming trees and a brisk wind off Lake Erie. Asked how he would adjust  Towler responded: "Just take a deep breath and just enjoy life right now."
 He deflected a question about demanding an apology and said he understood justice can take time.
 "I think it was just a process  you know  the DNA " he said. "It just took a couple of years to get to it. We finally got to it and the job was done."
 Towler smiled lightly  nodded and kept his intertwined fingers on his lap.
 "You're free " the judge said  leaving the bench to shake Towler's hand at the defense table. The judge choked back tears as she offered Towler a traditional Irish blessing.
 Towler had been serving a life sentence for the rape of a girl in a Cleveland park in 1981. Prosecutors received the test results Monday and immediately asked the court to free him.
 The Ohio Innocence Project  an organization that uses DNA evidence to clear people wrongfully convicted of crimes  said Towler was among the longest incarcerated people to be exonerated by DNA in U.S. history. The longest was a man freed in Florida in December after serving 35 years  according to the project.
 Attorneys with the project at the University of Cincinnati have been working on the Towler case since 2004  and Towler said that and his faith had given him hope.
 "That's how I've been living these last years  I've just been keeping hope " Towler said as relatives and friends crowded around him after the court session  some whooping  "Alleluia."
He walked from the courthouse  arms around his family members  amid the smell of freshly cut grass  blooming trees and a brisk wind off Lake Erie. Asked how he would adjust  [TGT] responded: "Just take a deep breath and just enjoy life right now."
 He deflected a question about demanding an apology and said he understood justice can take time.
 "I think it was just a process  you know  the DNA " he said. "It just took a couple of years to get to it. We finally got to it and the job was done."
 Towler smiled lightly  nodded and kept his intertwined fingers on his lap.
 "You're free " the judge said  leaving the bench to shake Towler's hand at the defense table. The judge choked back tears as she offered [TGT] a traditional Irish blessing.
 [TGT] had been serving a life sentence for the rape of a girl in a Cleveland park in 1981. Prosecutors received the test results Monday and immediately asked the court to free [TGT].
 The Ohio Innocence Project  an organization that uses DNA evidence to clear people wrongfully convicted of crimes  said [TGT] was among the longest incarcerated people to be exonerated by DNA in U.S. history. The longest was a man freed in Florida in December after serving 35 years  according to the project.
 Attorneys with the project at the University of Cincinnati have been working on the [TGT] case since 2004  and [TGT] said that and [TGT] faith had given [TGT] hope.
 "That's how I've been living these last years  I've just been keeping hope " [TGT] said as relatives and friends crowded around [TGT] after the court session  some whooping  "Alleluia."