Judge Orders Prisoners Freed

(Updated) Ron Taylor’s wife isn’t planning a welcome home ceremony yet, but her husband and another exonerated murder convict may walk free as soon as April 1.

Mary Taylor (at center in photo above, with bowed head) broke down in court Wednesday as she learned her husband would be released after 16 years in prison. The scheduled release date falls on a special day, the Taylors’ 15th wedding anniversary.

In a rebuke to the state, Superior Court Judge Stanley Fuger ordered Taylor and George Gould’s release during a hearing in Rockville Superior Court. The men have served 16 years of 80-year sentences for a 1993 murder in Fair Haven — a murder Judge Fuger concluded they did not commit.

Because of a mandatory 10-day waiting period to allow for appeals, Gould and Taylor will have to wait until at least April 1 before walking free.

Mary Taylor drove up to Rockville with her daughter Amanda (pictured behind her Wednesday) to hear the news for herself.

“I feel very good about it,” said Taylor after court. ​“Ron will come home, and we’ll move forward.”

Ron Taylor’s attorney, Peter Tsimbidaros (at left in photo, with Gould’s attorney, Joseph Visone), said he visited Gould and Taylor in prison Wednesday afternoon to deliver the news. He met with them in a prison visitors’ room at MacDougall-Walker Correctional Institution in Suffield.

“They are relieved,” he said.

For the past week, Tsimbidaros has been fighting for his client’s immediate release.

“Every day that these two men are behind bars is an injustice,” Tsimbidaros said after court.

“I don’t know how many days Mr. Taylor has to live,” he added. Taylor, who’s 51, is suffering from cancer that spread to his liver and lungs. He’s currently in chemotherapy treatment, Tsimbidaros said. He said he didn’t know whether Taylor would be able to return home April 1, because he might be in the middle of a round of chemo.

Because the state is seeking to reinstate the murder convictions, Judge Fuger set a few conditions on Gould and Taylors’ release. Fuger set a $100,000 non-surety bond on both prisoners. ​“Non-surety” means Gould and Taylor don’t have to post any money up front. They would pay only if they fail to appear in court.

Fuger ordered Gould and Taylor to stay in Connecticut once they are released, to report to state officials every week, and to be placed on a GPS electronic monitoring system. Click here to read Fuger’s order (on page 8).

Their pending freedom comes after a star witness recanted her testimony. Based on new evidence, Judge Fuger (pictured below) concluded last week in a habeas case that the men are actually innocent and suffered ​“manifest injustice.” He ordered that their convictions, their 80-year sentences, their finding of probable cause, and even their arrest warrants, be tossed out.

However, the state has begun to appeal the decision and has made several attempts to block the prisoners’ release.

In a motion issued last week, state prosecutor Michael O’Hare cited several grounds for appeal. One main argument is that Judge Fuger barred the state from admitting evidence surrounding the circumstances of the witness’s recantation. Judge Fuger Wednesday approved the state’s petition for certification, meaning that he agreed that it is worth having a higher court look at his decision. The state has 20 days to issue a formal appeal in state Appellate Court.

The April 1 freedom date may be postponed, however. The state also has 10 days to ask the Appellate Court to review Fuger’s order Wednesday. Such a review could delay their release date.

Mary Taylor said the state’s objections boil down to pure pride.

“The state, to soak its ego, is holding on to innocent men,” she said. ​“It’s all ego. They don’t want to lose.”

Mary Taylor said her daughter, Amanda, was only 5 years old when Ron Taylor was locked up.

“She wants her father to come home,” Taylor said. ​“She’s ready for him to come home.”

With the state’s appeals, however, Taylor’s not rolling out the welcome banner yet.

“I’m not planning anything until he walks out that door.”

Past stories on the Taylor/Gould case:

• Prosecutor Sticks To Guns
• Judge Delays Release In Wrongful Conviction Case
• Outraged Judge Reverses Murder Convictions