SALON

Sunday, Mar 10, 2013 2:40 PM UTC

Man falsely imprisoned for 25 years gets married

Michael Morton and Cynthia May Chessman got married this weekend

By

Topics: Michael Morton, Cynthia May Chessman, Texas, Prison, Legal issues, Innocence project, ,

Man falsely imprisoned for 25 years gets marriedMichael Morton looks on as he jokes with a friend during a break inside of the court room on the third day of the inquiry into former Williamson County district attorney Ken Anderson. (AP/Statesman.com, Ricardo B. Brazziell, Pool)

After he was falsely convicted of murdering his wife, Michael Morton wasted away in prison for almost 25 years. When he got out in 2011, he was ready to start his life again, but he hadn’t planned for romance to factor in. That quickly changed. This weekend he married Cynthia May Chessman who asked him out for coffee after hearing him speak in church, the New York Times reported:

In January 2012, he was invited to speak at First Baptist Church Liberty City, which he and his parents had been attending since his release. At the church that night, Mr. Morton spoke of his spiritual journey — one night in 2001 in his cell, he said, he felt the presence of God bathing him in a golden light — and he told the audience that if anyone wanted to learn more about prison life, he would meet for a cup of coffee.

Ms. Chessman, a member of the church, was there that night. “I was actually working in the sound booth, so I was paying real close attention to everything he was saying,” she said. “As he was talking, he said some things that just really rang common with me: that we had both been in a kind of rock-bottom place and needing the Lord to show us something.”

It’s a good thing Chessman managed to steel herself; Morton was struggling with conveniences like credit card machines, and was not ready for the rigors of the modern dating swirl. “I’d been locked up for a good while, and even in my previous life I’d never been asked out on a date,” he said. “Coffee dates are kind of a new phenomenon. I literally kind of scratched my head when she asked. I said, ‘Well, O.K.’ ”

Ms. Chessman did not find Mr. Morton angry and resentful. “I’ve marveled the whole time that I’ve known him at the lack of bitterness,” she said.

Mr. Morton was cautious with this new relationship. He had known of parolees who had married within six months of getting out and divorced within 18 months. He had never considered remarrying, and now that he was out of prison, he did not want to make a mistake by rushing into love. But as time went on, he warmed to her, and to ordinary life.

Pamela Colloff of Texas Monthly wrote a landmark article about the travesty of justice that sent Morton to prison and how a non-profit called The Innocence Project used DNA evidence to win his freedom. It’s well worth a read.

Alex Halperin

Alex Halperin is news editor at Salon. You can follow him on Twitter @alexhalperin. More Alex Halperin.

Next Article

You Might Also Like

More Related Stories

Featured Slide Shows

Gripping photos: The people of the Turkey protests (slideshow)

close X
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11
  • The protests take on a festive element as police forces move out of the park and square. Wearing a gas mask, this young man dances to traditional Turkish music in front of Taksim Square’s Ataturk Monument.

  • In Gezi Park since March 31st, this protester, originally caught off-guard by the Government’s teargas and water cannons, went out and bought a Russian army mask from WWII, preparing for what was to come.

  • This rambunctious boy seems to be enjoying the chaos. After taking this picture he threw a stone at the already destroyed building in the background.

  • Forming a line, the police face off directly with protesters in Taksim Square. After a while, they retreated and there was a general cheer – a back-and-forth dance that has been common since the beginning of this protest.

  • An elderly woman in Gezi Park reads the news. The tent community occupying the park was violently destroyed on June 16th.

  • Many different groups had set up booths to promote their cause in Taksim Square and Gezi Park. Standing in front of one, this man waves his flag while posing with conviction.

  • Many home-remedies are used to minimize the effects of tear gas. This woman has put a milky solution on her face, removing her mask after the tear gas dissipated. Before sunrise, the police came again for another round of teargasing.

  • People capitalize on the uprising -- selling flags, beer, gas masks, sky lanterns and spray paint to name just a few of the popular items.

  • On Monday morning, June 11, the police execute a strong offensive. Many plain-clothed police officers, like the ones seen here, clash with protesters in the side streets away from the main stand-off in Taksim.

  • The authorities seem to be most aggressive in the night, pushing protesters away from the square and park. After being teargassed this young woman catches her breath with other protesters on Siraselviler Street.

  • Recent Slide Shows

  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11

Related Videos

More Related Stories

Comments

 6 Comments

Comment Preview

Your name will appear as username ( settings | log out )

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href=""> <b> <em> <strong> <i> <blockquote>

follow salon

Most Read

Popular on Reddit

links from salon.com

vote
Study: Young people are more liberal than they think they are.
63 points64 points | 22 comments
vote
Virginia Man Pleads Guilty To Forging Newt Gingrich Primary Signatures: Adam Ward pleaded guilty to 36 counts of voter fraud and perjury
79 points80 points | 6 comments
vote
How cash secretly rules surveillance policy: Today's congressional hearing was a joke. The reason: Firms like Booz Allen bankroll and own Congress. Here's how
41 points42 points | 6 comments
vote
Here Come the Edward Snowden Truthers
51 points52 points | 18 comments
vote
The internal war between House Oversight Committee chair Darrell Issa and ranking Democrat Elijah Cummings blew up again Tuesday, when Cummings released the full transcript of a five-hour interview with the conservative Republican IRS screening manager.
40 points41 points | 6 comments

From Around the Web

Presented by Scribol
listener_new_rect The Listener: "We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves": Growing up primate

Recommendations