Innocent Vietnam Veteran Released from Prison...After 38 Years!

Man Who Spent Nearly 40 Years Behind Bars for Crime He Did Not Commit Speaks Out
NBC San Diego
Wendy Fry

Craig Coley, a 70-year-old Vietnam veteran, hopes authorities can still find the man who killed his then-girlfriend and her 4-year-old son in 1978

Craig Richard Coley has spent more than 38 years behind bars for a double homicide he did not commit. On Thanksgiving Day, he tasted freedom.

On Thursday morning, Coley woke up in Carlsbad, California, just blocks from the beach, a free man for the first time since Nov. 11, 1978.

During an hour-long exclusive interview with NBC 7, the 70-year-old Vietnam veteran broke down and cried while reading details of the horrific crime that put him away.

“In the early morning hours, of November 11, 1978, Rhonda Wicht was beaten and strangled to death in her apartment. Her 4-year-old son...”

Coley has maintained his innocence from behind bars for more than 38 years.

He was arrested on Veteran’s Day 1978 after serving his country in the U.S. Navy. His service included several deployments to Vietnam aboard USS Enterprise and USS Bainbridge.

read more here