Former inmates settle lawsuit over wrongful convictions

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Two men who served 11 years in prison for a killing they did not commit have settled their lawsuits against the city of Ada and the state of Oklahoma. <br><br>Dennis L. Fritz, a Kansas

Friday, November 29th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Two men who served 11 years in prison for a killing they did not commit have settled their lawsuits against the city of Ada and the state of Oklahoma.

Dennis L. Fritz, a Kansas City, construction worker, said the sum is less than the $100 million he and Ronald K. Williamson had initially sought. However, he called the sum ``comfortable.''

``It's still quite a bit of money and will help alleviate the pain and suffering I endured,'' Fritz said.

Terms of the settlement have been sealed and neither Fritz nor an attorney representing Williamson, who once came days away from execution, will say how much was awarded to the two men.

Fritz and Williamson were convicted in 1988 of killing Debra Sue Carter, 21, six years earlier. She was strangled and sexually assaulted by a killer who also stuffed a rag down her throat.

One of the witnesses against the two men, Glen Gore, has been tied to the crime scene by DNA evidence. Gore, 42, is charged with first-degree murder and is awaiting trial. Witnesses say Carter pushed Gore away in an Ada night club parking lot hours before her death.

Fritz, who received a life prison sentence, and Williamson, who was sentenced to death, were convicted by microscopic hair comparisons that have since been discredited. They also claimed Pontotoc County prosecutors used unreliable witnesses, such as Gore, to build their case.

Fritz and Williamson were released three years ago.

Fritz said he has received some Social Security benefits since his release for suffering post-traumatic stress disorder related to his imprisonment.

Fritz said his incarceration was difficult, but his freedom and the lawsuit have helped make the justice system better.

``It made me feel like that if I had to go through this, there was some purpose,'' Fritz said.