Teen Fears His Freedom Could Be Just a Dream

His first night home after 2 1/2 years in prison, Arthur Carmona slept for only two hours. “I was afraid if I went to sleep, when I woke up, I’d be back in there,” he said.

Freed after the district attorney did not oppose the dismissal of his robbery conviction, Carmona said he didn’t want to go to Disneyland or the movies or skateboarding: “I just want to be with my family.”

When he left the Theo Lacy Branch Jail in Orange on Tuesday, he kept his head down and his mouth closed as he walked past reporters who had gathered to watch the reunion with his mother.

Wednesday, the quiet young man dressed up in a white shirt, green tie, green pants and black suspenders to answer reporters’ questions at a restaurant in Anaheim. His hair was prison short, and he had a wispy mustache and beard.

He was admittedly overwhelmed by the phalanx of TV news cameras and microphones facing him.

He proclaimed himself “110% innocent.”

Despite having spent time in prison for a crime he says he didn’t commit, Carmona was remarkably calm. “I ain’t angry,” he said, a smile creeping onto his face. “I’m too happy to be angry.”

Neither he nor his lawyers would say whether he plans to sue over his incarceration. “I’m not going to ask him to think about another legal matter for a couple of weeks,” said Nadia Davis, one of his attorneys.

As part of the deal that set him free, Carmona agreed that his conviction was not the result of misconduct by police or Orange County Dist. Atty. Tony Rackauckas, seemingly precluding lawsuits against them.

His mother, Ronnie Carmona, said she made the decision that her son should sign the deal. “It’s hard to swallow, but what are you going to do?” she said. “I wanted my son right now. Two and a half years was hell for me without my child. . . . Anything could have happened. I could have died and not seen my son again.”

When asked about comments Rackauckas made Tuesday chastising her son and criticizing Times Orange County columnist Dana Parsons for his coverage of the case, Ronnie Carmona exploded. “If you have to attack someone, bring it on right here because I’m ready,” she said, her voice rising in anger.

Davis also attacked the authorities, as she has since the charges were dropped. “Is it right that Arthur Carmona was, for the first time Monday, offered his freedom if he agreed to untruthful statements that mock his innocence? And is it right that this young man . . . has not received a mere apology from any of the individuals who contributed to putting him through this? We all know the answer is no.”

After Superior Court Judge Everett Dickey threw out robbery charges against Carmona, Rackauckas said that though his office would not retry the young man, the decision should not be seen as a belief that he is innocent. “He was tried by a fair judge and an honest jury,” the district attorney said at a news conference. “They weighed the evidence and reached a just verdict.”

Since the trial, two jurors and a key witness have expressed doubts about Carmona’s guilt.

Carmona said that having his freedom was “like walking on the clouds.”

He plans to finish the five units he needs for a high school diploma, then attend college. He wants to be a chef and also may study law.

What he really wants he said, is “success. Get to school. Get the highest degree I can get. Show society I can be somebody. I lost two prime years of my life. Maybe I’ll be able to get them back.”