CLEVELAND — Isaiah Andrews, a Cleveland native who spent 45 years incarcerated for a crime he did not commit, died early Sunday morning at the age of 83.
Andrews was arrested, charged, and sentenced after his wife, Regina, was murdered in 1975. He spent 45 years in prison before his release in 2020.
The Ohio Innocence Project was vital in Andrews' release from prison. The project aims to free every innocent person in Ohio who's been convicted of a crime they didn't commit.
Brian Howe was a part of the team that helped Andrews get out of prison.
"Brian was irreplaceable in regards to isaiah's freedom, said Marcus Sidoti, Andrews' attorney. "Brian was an angel for him to get that case and to work so hard to get those documents that ended up letting Isaiah out."
RELATED: Cleveland's Isaiah Andrews, who served 45 years in prison for murder he didn't commit, dies at 83
Sidoti started working with Andrews just weeks after his release in 2020.
"This is a file that never left my desk for 2 years, and I hope that our relationship along with his relationship with all the support staff that was pouring out from the day he was released, you know provided him with some sense of normalcy outside of the walls for the last 2 years," says Sidoti.
Sidoti believes that Andrews' story will be a beacon for others who have been wrongfully incarcerated.
"I think his case is one of those that really opens a lot of people's eyes that this stuff does go on and that these people need to be held responsible, people that suppress the evidence and do things just like what happened in Isaiah's case," says Sidoti.
Marcus Sidoti says there are still two matters pending after Andrews' death.
"There's one with the state that's in the court of claims, and the federal civil rights lawsuit," says Sidoti.
Andrews wants people held responsible, according to Sidoti.
"They took his life away from him, but his voice goes beyond him leaving earth yesterday," says Sidoti.
Services for Isaiah Andrews are anticipated to take place Wednesday in Solon.
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