A man who was wrongfully convicted in Broward was compensated by the state of Florida for having served some three and a half years in jail.

Leroy McGee, who was convicted in 1991 for armed robbery at a Chevron gas station on Oakland Park Blvd, on Tuesday, signed an agreement at the Broward Public Defender’s Office to be compensated $179,000 from a state fund. The fund has been specially established to compensate individuals who have served time when wrongly convicted. He is the first person to be compensated under the fund.

According to reports, McGee could have received his compensation some six months ago. His attorney, David Comras said McGee delayed because it was felt that there were loopholes in the relatively new Florida law that could have excluded most individuals who had been wrongfully convicted. McGee said he didn’t mind the delay for the law to be fair, as he knew that there were other innocent individuals in prison, who should benefit from the state funds when it becomes necessary.

However, the financial compensation is not a lump sum payment, but will be paid to McGee over a 10-year period.

Since being released from prison, McGee has been working three jobs to make ends meet. Having been divorced since his release, McGee who has five children, now lives with his mother and has child support deducted from his salary.

According to the reports Comras said that the law had serious flaws as it stated that anyone with a felony conviction before or during the wrongful incarceration was excluded from the program. Plus, the law is complicated requiring those seeking compensation to obtain the assistance of a lawyer, while the amount to be compensated does not cover legal fees. Comras said he waived the fees that would normally have been charged to McGee.

No physical evidence had placed McGee at the scene of the gas station robbery, and although his time card from his job at Fort Lauderdale High School indicated that he was on the job, he was nonetheless convicted. This was based on the evidence of a clerk at the gas station who identified McGee from a line up of suspects. But, according to McGee who spoke to the media at the signing for the compensation, his attorney at the time brought the wrong time card to court.

McGee said he fought relentlessly to clear his name while he was in prison, and the attorney appointed to review his case found several errors in the case, resulting in a Broward Circuit judge throwing out the conviction in 1994.

In 1995 he was rehired by the Broward School Board, but had to start from scratch. But, he has now risen to the level of a carpenter in the district.