Grave marker unveiled for innocent man

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) - Hundreds gathered to unveil a historical marker at the grave of a man who died in prison but was later cleared by DNA testing of the crime that sent him there.

U.S. Army veteran and Texas Tech University student Tim Cole was convicted of the 1985 rape of a fellow student. He always maintained his innocence, even though admitting to the crime could have earned him parole.

In 1999, at 39, Cole died in prison of asthma complications. In 2008, DNA tests cleared him and implicated convicted rapist Jerry Wayne Johnson, who had confessed in letters to court officials dating to 1995.

Cole's mother, Ruby Session, elected officials and others placed roses at Cole's grave in Fort Worth's Mount Olivet Cemetery. Fellow U.S. Army veterans fired an 18-gun salute.