Nationwide — Maurice Hastings, an African American man who spent 38 years in prison for a crime he did not commit, has received a $25 million settlement after DNA evidence cleared him of a 1983 murder in Inglewood. His case is now the largest wrongful conviction settlement in California history.
Hastings, now 72 years old, was sentenced to life without parole for the killing of Roberta Wydermyer, who was found shot in the head. Despite maintaining his innocence, prosecutors secured a conviction, and his requests for DNA testing were rejected for years, according to ABC 7 News.
In 2021, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office finally allowed DNA testing on evidence collected from the victim. The results excluded Hastings and instead pointed to Kenneth Packnett, a man later convicted in a separate violent crime with strikingly similar details. Packnett died in prison in 2020.
With this discovery, Hastings’ conviction was overturned in 2022. The following year, a judge formally declared him “factually innocent,” confirming that he played no role in Wydermyer’s death. After spending 38 years behind bars, Hastings was finally free.
In August, the City of Inglewood approved a $25 million settlement, according to court filings. Other terms of the agreement remain confidential.
“No amount of money could ever restore the 38 years of my life that were stolen from me,” Hastings said in a statement. “But this settlement is a welcome end to a very long road, and I look forward to moving on with my life.”
Attorneys for Hastings accused two police officers and a district attorney investigator of framing him in the original case. Inglewood officials did not respond to requests for comment when the settlement became public.
Hastings now lives in Southern California, where he is active in his church. His lawyers say his case highlights the heavy cost of misconduct within law enforcement.