Father Cleared in 7 Children Deaths

The state dropped charges Friday against a former migrant worker who spent more than 21 years in prison for the poisoning deaths of his seven children, saying the evidence against him was insufficient.

Retired Circuit Judge Clifton Kelly overturned the conviction of James Joseph Richardson, 53, last week. His case was reopened when defense attorneys Ellis Rubin and Mark Lane made public confidential reports from an investigators file indicating that prosecutors withheld evidence from Richardson’s trial attorney and may have abetted perjured testimony.

“The evidence I have indicates to me that James Richardson probably did not commit this crime,” Dade County State Atty. Janet Reno said. “We will never be able to prove who did (commit the crime). Too much time has passed and too much evidence has been destroyed.”