Alaska men exonerated in 1997 beating death, lawyer says

An attorney in the Fairbanks Four case saidFridaythe four indigenous men previously convicted in the 1997 beating death of a teenager were exonerated by a settlement that threw out their murder convictions.

The statement by Alaska Innocence Project attorney BillOberlycontradicted an earlier contention by state prosecutors that the men were not exonerated in the deal.

"They are no longer convicted of the crimes that they were wrongly convicted of,"Oberlysaid, noting that the men can check the "no" box on future job applications asking if they are convicted felons.

After the deal was reached, the office of Alaska Attorney General Craig Richards said the outcome wasn't an exoneration.

"In this settlement, the four defendants agreed they were properly and validly investigated, prosecuted and convicted," the office said in a news releaseThursday. "This compromise reflects the attorney general's recognition that if the defendants were retried today it is not clear under the current state of the evidence that they would be convicted."

The three Alaska Native men and an American Indian -- George Frese, Eugene Vent,MarvinRoberts and Kevin Pease -- had been convicted of second-degree murder even though they always maintained their innocence in the death of 15-year-old John Hartman.

Alaska Native leaders have long advocated for their release, saying the convictions were racially motivated and emblematic of how Alaska Natives have been treated by the justice system.

The state continued to vigorously defend the convictions through a civil trial that ended in early November.

The state made a surprise offer last week to free the three men who remained behind bars. Roberts has been on parole.

Richards previously acknowledged that some people would be understandably upset by this decision but explained that the resolution was in the best interest of the state.

The Alaska Innocence Project advocated for the men based on the recollections of a Fairbanks man now in prison for murder in California.

William Z. Holmes Sr., who was a senior at Lathrop High School in Fairbanks in 1997, said he was present when Hartman was fatally beaten by a group of four of his Lathrop classmates.

Hartman's brother, Chris Kelly, testified by phone at the hearing, voicing his objections to the deal. After the hearing, Kelly told The Associated Press he was flabbergasted at the outcome, saying only guilty people would have accepted such an agreement.

"I can't believe it," he said. "I feel like my family is completely wronged."

Alaska Gov. BillWalker said in a statementThursdaythat he was "glad there was a process available to the Fairbanks Four where all involved could arrive at a mutually acceptable agreement." He had been considering pardons for the men.

Some Fairbanks Four supporters are calling for an independent investigation for what they describe as a miscarriage of justice.