Life on Hold

RALEIGH -- The man declared innocent of murder in the first case of its kind in the country is still awaiting a pardon because the governor won't grant it until she gets more evidence.

A spokeswoman for Gov. Bev Perdue said Friday that Perdue is waiting for the results of tests on the clothing worn by Greg Taylor the night that Jacquetta Thomas was killed in September 1991. Taylor agreed in March to let Raleigh police test that clothing, saying he wanted no doubt about his innocence.

Perdue spokeswoman Chrissy Pearson said the governor also doesn't want any doubt cast when she grants a pardon of innocence. Taylor is eligible for $750,000 in compensation if Perdue grants a pardon on the basis of innocence.

"The governor feels from what she has seen from the innocence commission this should be an easy decision with the pardon application," Pearson said. "But she does not want to make that call with that question remaining from the Raleigh Police Department to draw any doubt on her decision. She would rather give it a couple of weeks and find the DNA evidence exonerates him without any question."

"With the police and courts already declaring I'm innocent, I would like to know why the governor feels any further need to speculate on that," Taylor said Friday.

In February, a three-judge panel found Taylor innocent of Thomas' murder, for which he served almost 17 years. The panel heard the case as a result of the work of the N.C. Innocence Inquiry Commission, the only panel of its kind in the country set up to investigate claims of innocence.

In March, Raleigh police asked to test Taylor's clothing. Even then, police Chief Harry Dolan said the testing was a part of reopening the case of Thomas' beating death and not meant to cast doubt on Taylor's innocence.

A Raleigh police spokesman didn't immediately respond when asked when police expect the test results.

http://www.wral.com/news/state/story/7564097/