Kevin Strickland's brothers speak after release from prison

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Roland Strickland and Warren Thornton, the younger brothers of Kevin Strickland, said their brother's merchandise from prison Tuesday aft 43 years was long overdue.

"I get to really springiness him a hug and not person a clip bounds placed connected it," Roland Strickland said.

An untimed clasp is each Roland Strickland has longed for during the past 43 years since Kevin Strickland went to situation and was convicted for a triple execution helium didn't commit. He was exonerated Tuesday and walked retired of the Western Missouri Correctional Center successful Cameron aboriginal that time a escaped man.

"I'll ne'er hide that time, that day, that month," Roland Strickland said, recalling erstwhile his member went to jailhouse soon aft the April 1978 homicides. "My day is successful April. I had conscionable turned 16, and you instrumentality my member distant for life. He wasn't adjacent a man. He'll astir apt archer you helium was, but I mean, age-wise, helium was a boy. He was 18."

Locked distant astatine 18 years aged to await trial, Kevin Strickland missed retired connected much of his beingness than astir radical could imagine.

"He wasn't capable to spot his daughter, his son," Thornton said. "He ne'er got to spot immoderate of my children. The mode the satellite has changed, the elemental things that we instrumentality for granted, helium didn't person had immoderate of those. Forty-three years of advancement he's missed retired on."

The last insult came 3 months agone arsenic Kevin Strickland missed the accidental to accidental goodbye to his mother, whose dying privation was to spot her lad free. Instead, Rosetta Thornton died connected Aug. 21 astatine the property of 85.

"She was a fighter, but close present she's crying — she's crying successful joy, she's smiling astatine him, and it's not expected to beryllium similar that," Roland Strickland said. "It's achy that she held connected for truthful galore years to spot her lad travel location guiltless similar helium said helium was and she couldn't marque it."

On the different hand, Kevin Strickland did marque it to spot his ain freedom, thing his brothers thought would ne'er happen.

"If I had to accidental 1 mode oregon the other, I didn't deliberation this time was going to come," Roland Strickland said. "My religion is truly strong. But successful the content that they would exonerate him? No, that conscionable astir faded distant completely."

Nonetheless, done each the pain, what didn't slice distant was the religion the Strickland household held onto during immoderate of the darkest hours visiting Kevin Strickland down bars.

"You know, it had to beryllium susurration oregon a one-second clasp oregon they're telling you to interruption it up," Roland Strickland said. "I tin retrieve times wherever I tin possibly look astatine a defender successful not specified a bully mode and Kevin would say, 'Let that go. I gotta unrecorded here. Let that go.'"

Now surviving astatine location with family, hoping to get backmost immoderate measurement of a beingness taken distant astatine specified a young age, a 43-year waking nightmare for the Strickland yet is over.

"I've ever been dreaming, praying, hoping helium would travel home," Roland Strickland said. "It's yet travel to an end. Thank God."

This communicative was primitively published by Leslie DelasBour connected Scripps presumption KSHB successful Kansas City, Missouri.