Exonerated NYC Man Dies From Asthma Attack: Lawyer

A New York City man freed after serving 23 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit died over the weekend.

A friend and supporter of William Lopez says he died Saturday from an asthma attack.

Jeffrey Deskovic says Lopez passed away before his $124 million federal civil lawsuit against the city for false imprisonment was set to begin.

Lopez's attorney, Dennis Kelly, says Monday's pre-motion conference was adjourned to Oct. 17.

Deskovic runs The Jeffrey Deskovic Foundation for Justice that helped highlight Lopez's case.

Lopez was freed in 2013 after a judge called the case "rotten from Day 1."

According to prosecutors, two men shot a drug dealer with a double-barreled shotgun in 1989. Although no murder weapon or forensic evidence was found at the scene, prosecutors relied on two witnesses. 

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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