Hogan pardons Walter Lomax, who was wrongfully convicted, imprisoned for decades

In one of his final acts as Maryland’s governor last week, Larry Hogan pardoned a man whose quest to be compensated for decades of unjust imprisonment led the state to establish guidelines for paying back those wrongfully convicted.

Hogan, a Republican, issued the pardon order Friday proclaiming Walter Lomax innocent, more than a year and a half after Hogan signed legislation bearing Lomax’s name. The 75-year-old spent nearly four decades in prison for a fatal shooting in Baltimore he always maintained he did not commit.

Reached by phone Tuesday afternoon, Lomax described the gubernatorial pardon as “the final stage” of certifying his innocence.

“All of my 20s, all of my 30s, all of my 40s, and all of my 50s were taken away from me. I spent two-thirds of my life incarcerated,” Lomax told The Baltimore Sun.

Billy Murphy, one of Lomax’s lawyers, said he was “delighted” to learn of Hogan’s order.

“It’s been in the works for a long time. We asked for it a long time ago. We began to get disappointed, but we are no longer disappointed,” Murphy said. “This is a significant additional step that lets the world know that the governor of Maryland did not think this conviction was warranted. Congratulations to Walter and congratulations to Governor Hogan.”

Hogan, whose last full day in office was Tuesday, declined to comment through a spokesman.

The pardon from Hogan marks just the latest milestone in Lomax’s journey to find justice.

He was released from prison Dec. 13, 2006 — exactly 39 years after he was arrested for the fatal shooting of 56-year-old convenience store manager Robert Brewer. At the time, a Baltimore judge reopened Lomax’s case at his lawyers’ request and modified his life sentence to time-served so he could walk free.

Lomax had asserted his innocence for decades and, after his wrongful conviction, raised claims of ineffective trial and appellate attorneys. While he was incarcerated, he got a degree and became a writer.

A city judge vacated his conviction in 2014 before prosecutors dismissed his charges.

“Finally, after close to 50 years, close to a half-century, something my family members and I have waited for: I’ve finally been vindicated,” Lomax said at the time.

Then-State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby certified Lomax’s innocence in 2015, according to Hogan’s order.

In October 2019, the state Board of Public Works agreed to pay Lomax $3 million for the decades he spent behind bars. Lomax had been pushing the state to compensate him and others wrongfully convicted for the years they lost to incarceration.

Lomax long championed legislation in the Maryland General Assembly that aimed to establish standards for how the state compensates people who were wrongfully convicted and incarcerated. He suffered a heart attack in 2020 while preparing to testify for a bill in the state Senate.

After being revived by a sheriff and a Maryland State Police trooper, Lomax was taken to the hospital. He spoke to state Sen. Bill Ferguson, a Baltimore Democrat, from his hospital bed.

“You just really got to pass this bill,” Ferguson recalled Lomax saying at the time.

While visiting Lomax in the hospital, Ferguson pledged to pass the legislation. He made good on that promise in 2021, clearing up a confusing and political road to compensation from the state.

“I had recognized that I had to overcome an enormous amount of challenges, even after it had been recognized I was innocent,” Lomax told The Sun on Tuesday. “I felt like nobody else should have to go through that, so that was an enormous achievement.”

Hogan signed the Walter Lomax Act in April 2021, and the law took effect that July 1.

“I’m thankful to be alive,” Lomax said Tuesday. “I’m thankful to be able to accomplish the things that I’ve been able to accomplish since my release.”