How horrible it must be for an innocent man to be on death row. This is the true story about Ray Kron (30) and how he was condemned to death row because a jury found him guilty of the brutal rape and murder of a distant friend, bartender Kim Ancona (36) in December 1991 in a Phoenix, AZ lounge called The CBS Lounge.
The only strong evidence that the prosecution had in this case was the tooth imprints on the breast of Kim Ancona and somehow this tooth imprint wound up to be the main evidence used in this case. In the end, with much private efforts of one of Ray's relatives to help him to get out of prison / death row, which included a huge amount of money, it took another trial and another time being condemned to death row before finally the other evidence in this case was considered because the DNA of the blood drops found convicted the real murderer, Kenneth Phillips.
Mr. Phillips, a native American, told the police that he noticed that Ms Ancona had been laughing at him with a group of her friends and denied him getting any more drinks. He decided to come back later and to assault Ms Ancona to get back at her for her behavior towards him.
Mr. Krone had been convicted in 1992 on expert testimony about the tooth imprints on Ms Ancona's body. So for 10 years Mr. Krone sat on death row knowing that he was innocent and he had to fight off dangerous and violent offenders who attacked him on many occasions when he walked through the hallways of the prison and he was blessed to survive these attacks.
After Ray Krone had been convicted for the second time and the additional evidence did not set him free he went to death row again and this time it was evident that an innocent man was on death row. How horrible that must have felt and what human spiritual strength it must have taken for him to make it through these very difficult times on a virtual "hell on earth."
What set Ray Krone free was the caring relatives that invested so much money, time and energy to help him to get out of death row by finding the evidence to find the real murderer. As soon as the blood evidence found on Ms Ancona's clothing was entered into the police computer, the offender Mr. Phillips, who had been incarcerated for assaulting a 10 year old child, was found. In the end it was the blood DNA evidence that set him free.
With the money that Mr. Krone got from Arizona state for having to had spend 10 years on death row, he innnocently, he paid off his relative who worked so hard and spent all his money to set him free. What a wonderful story of courage and caring this is!! I hope and pray that all people on death row who are there innocently can be freed like Ray Krone was.
It took a horrible murder of a young woman, Kim Ancona, to reveal that the justice system convicts people innocently to death row for 10 years and I pray for Kim Ancona's family too because her murder was very brutal and so senseless.
It seems that there was only one winner in this tragic story and the losers were Ms Ancona for having said the wrong thing at the wrong time and she didn't earn to be murdered for that . Then there is Mr. Kenneth Phillips who grew up not being able to handle criticism and I guess bullying and he only knew violence to fight back and end a life. The winner was Mr. Krone because after 10 years in "hell on earth" he overcame that huge obstacle to be free again and it must be like a second birth for him.
Congratulations Mr. Ray Krone!!
http://forejustice.org/wc/ray_krone_JD_vol2_i9.htm