New York State will pay a man who was wrongly convicted and imprisoned for raping author Alice Sebold more than $5 million after he filed a lawsuit following his release.
Anthony J. Broadwater, 62, was imprisoned for 16 years for Sebold's rape, which occurred when she was a college student at Syracuse University in 1981.
According to the New York Times, lawyers for Broadwater signed a settlement last week and New York's Attorney General Letitia James was present
The agreement will be sent to a judge for signing off. Melissa Swartz, a lawyer for Broadwater, said Ramón E. Rivera with the state's court had verbally approved.
'I appreciate what Attorney General James has done and I hope and pray that others in my situation can achieve the same measure of justice,' Broadwater said Monday.
The wrongfully imprisoned man had his conviction vacated by a New York judge in November 2021 who said at the time the case against him was deeply flawed.
Swartz on Monday said Broadwater was happy to hear that New York state lawyers had decided against a deposition where he would have to rehash the events.
'That would be extremely difficult for Tony to go through,' the lawyer said.
In a statement, James said the payment is a 'critical step to deliver some semblance of justice to Mr. Broadwater.'
The man says he hopes to use the money to buy land and a home for himself and his partner somewhere private.
On Monday after the settlement became public, Sebold released a brief statement.
'No amount of money can erase the injustices Mr. Broadwater suffered,' she said.
'But the settlement now officially acknowledges them,' the author wrote.
After the 1981 assault, Sebold went on to write a memoir in which she detailed the rape. In 'Lucky,' the author described in detail her assault which happened at a park near Syracuse University's campus.
The author was 18-years-old and a freshman at the college at the time.
She told campus security about the assault immediately after it occurred and then told the local police. Evidence including a rape kit was taken.
Sebold described her attacker to police and a sketch was composed. The sketch that was made did not resemble the actual man who had attacked her.
On Monday after the settlement became public, Sebold released a brief statement
Lawyers for Broadwater signed a settlement last week and New York's Attorney General Letitia James (pictured above) was present at the signing
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