TAMPA, Fla., April 7 (UPI) -- Leonard Brown became a free man Friday, 24 years after the Tampa, Fla., man was sent to prison on an illegal sentence.
Brown was involved in two Tampa robberies in late 1980 and early 1981 and originally was charged with attempted murder and armed robbery, the St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times said. He agreed to plead guilty a reduced charge after it was shown he did not do the shooting.
He drew a short jail term and 10 years probation but a bad check charge sent him back to court and a new judge. This judge sentenced him 30 years for violating his robbery probation and 99 years on the attempted murder charge after allegedly misreading the earlier plea agreement.
This January, Brown filed a motion claiming his sentence was illegal. State Attorney Mark Ober agreed and worked to expedite Brown's release.
