A Chicago Latino was exonerated after 25 years in prison for murder
José Tinajero was released from a Chicago prison after 25 years and his murder conviction overturned; Tinajero is one of dozens who allege they were coerced into false confessions by a former detective, Reynaldo Guevara.
After having spent 25 years in prison for murder, José Tinajero is now a free man. His conviction and that of Thomas Kelly, another man who was accused of the same crime, were overturned last week by a Chicago judge.
“Being free is a real challenge for me. My mom took me to a TJ Maxx store to shop, and I felt like everyone was looking at me. It was very uncomfortable. I felt like I was out of place. It’s hard to deal with this,” Tinajero, 45, said in an exclusive interview with Noticias Telemundo on Friday.
“I just want to spend time with my family, you know? They were always there for me. My mom, my daughter and now I have a granddaughter,” he said. “I have to make up for lost time with my daughter, because I was out of her life for 25 whole years and I have to make peace with her. My future is to focus on my family, and work, of course, to help support them.”
José Tinajero, 45, during an interview with Noticias Telemundo from his home in Chicago on Friday.Albinson LinaresAlthough Tinajero’s conviction was overturned Wednesday, he remained incarcerated at the Kewanee Correctional Facility, about 150 miles southwest of Chicago, until Thursday afternoon, when he was able to return home and reunite with his loved ones.
“I was born here in Chicago, in the United States, and I was raised by a great mother who did everything she could for me. My father left us when I was very young, but my mother did a great job, and she has suffered a lot from all of this,” he said.
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