Ronnell Johnson was 20 years old when he was accused of participating in a 2007 armed robbery at a carwash in Ypsilanti. The victim could not identify any of the four masked assailants, and investigators recovered no fingerprints or other physical evidence connecting Johnson to the crime. Johnson became a suspect after his estranged father claimed to recognize him in televised surveillance footage based on his eyebrows and clothing. Johnson’s aunt also identified him from the recording, although her testimony about how she first viewed it was inconsistent. Items recovered from Johnson’s shared bedroom did not match important details visible in the footage. The gun was not shown to belong to him, the coats differed from the robber’s coat, and the gloves were a different style. The victim believed the assailants were shorter than his own six-foot height, while Johnson stood six feet one inch tall. Despite the lack of physical evidence, Johnson was convicted in March 2008 based primarily on his father’s identification and was sentenced to 15 to 25 years in prison. His aunt later recanted, explaining that she had never been certain Johnson was the person in the video. After reviewing the footage more carefully, she concluded that the robber was shorter, heavier, and had different features. A photogrammetry expert independently estimated the suspect’s height at approximately five feet nine inches. A later review uncovered that Johnson’s father had received a substantial reduction in unrelated criminal charges while Johnson’s case was pending. He had faced felony assault charges and habitual-offender consequences but was permitted to plead guilty to a misdemeanor shortly after implicating his son. This information, which could have exposed a possible motive for his testimony, was not disclosed to Johnson’s defense. The Washtenaw County Prosecutor’s Office acknowledged the constitutional violation and supported overturning the conviction. In June 2022, the court vacated Johnson’s convictions and dismissed all charges. He was released after spending more than 14 years wrongfully incarcerated. (National Registry of Exonerations)