Freed man talking

April 30, 2002

Hosts Robert Novak and Paul Begala stepped into the Crossfire with Ray Krone, who was released from prison after DNA evidence showed he didn't commit the murder for which he served 10 years of a life sentence, facing the death penalty. He became a free man on Monday.

 NOVAK: Mr. Krone, everybody has a great deal of sympathy for you, the fact that you were unjustly put in prison, spent all that time, took all that time out of your life, but I don't quite see what that has to do with the question of whether the death penalty is valuable or not. Do you think that has anything to do with the need to execute men and women who are convicted of violent hideous crimes?

 RAY KRONE: That's a moral value that has to be determined by the individual. I just know that there's something wrong with the system that has allowed so many innocent people to face the ultimate penalty. I hope it can be changed.

 BEGALA: Mr. Krone, let me just ask you about yourself now and your life, now that you have your life back. Where do you go to get your good name back? Where do you go to get those 10 years back? How does society and our government compensate you?

 KRONE: Well, you can't get those 10 years back. It's gone, I can't look back. I have to look ahead and hope that the things that I lost in those ten years will be forgotten and what's ahead of me is still have a chance to make for a better life and overcome the past.

 NOVAK: Mr. Krone, do you think you have lost faith in the justice system in the United States after your experience?

 KRONE: No, I won't say it's the justice system. I would say there's definitely some weak individuals and things that need to be addressed that -- as human beings errors are inherent. There's going to be some mistakes made, it's the way the mistakes are corrected, how soon it can be corrected and the actions taken after that.

 BEGALA: In fact, one of the ways to try to correct those mistakes, Mr. Krone, ...(is) legislation here in Washington that you may be familiar with that would require in death penalty cases, DNA evidence, the kind that finally cleared you after 10 years of your life was ruined --require competent attorneys at government expense for everybody accused of capital crimes -- might that law might have prevented you from being unjustly accused and sentenced to death?

 KRONE: That's a good question. The DNA has advanced certainly a lot since my original evidence was tested. But certainly the DNA databases that they wanted to establish were a key element in allowing me my freedom and proving my innocence. I'm a strong supporter of the Innocence Project. I believe in what they're doing. I also believe there's other strong important measures like requiring the police to tape-record all interviews.

 BEGALA: Mr. Krone, I really want to thank you so much for joining us. You're a remarkable man to emerge from that experience with no bitterness. Ray Krone, thank you.

 KRONE: Thank you.