Lorinda Swain
Wrongfully Convicted: August 20, 2002
Exonerated: May 19, 2016
Calhoun County
Lorinda Swain was wrongfully convicted of criminal sexual conduct in Calhoun County in 2002. Hers was one of the earliest cases accepted and litigated by the Innocence Clinic after it opened in 2009. The clinic convinced the circuit court judge to grant a new trial and release Lorinda on bond in July 2009.
The prosecution appealed the case for several years. The clinic finally scored the ultimate victory in the case in 2016, after the Michigan Supreme Court upheld the decision granting a new trial. The prosecutor dismissed charges shortly thereafter, and Lorinda was exonerated in May 2016.
More details available at:
- The National Registry of Exonerations: Lorinda Swain
- Michigan Radio: “Lorinda Swain, once convicted of child abuse, is free”
- Battle Creek Enquirer: “Charges to be dropped against mom accused of sex abuse of adopted son”
- Wood TV 8: “Lorinda Swain agrees to $1.9M settlement from county”