Man Reaches $21 Million Settlement With Simi Valley After Being Pardoned For 1978 Double Murder

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — A man who spent nearly four decades in prison for two murders he didn't commit will receive $21 million from the city of Simi Valley in a new settlement.

The settlement with Simi Valley was reached a year after Craig Coley received a $2 million payment from the state of California. Coley was pardoned by Gov. Jerry Brown in 2017 for the 1978 murders of his ex-girlfriend, Rhonda Wicht, and her 4-year-old son.

When tests revealed Coley's DNA wasn't on a key piece of evidence used to convict him, Simi Valley's police chief and Ventura County's district attorney asked Brown to pardon him. He was released from prison in November 2017.

Coley's attorney says that while the settlement offers closure, it cannot compensate for the life he missed while behind bars.

Simi Valley officials are now waiting to see if DNA from the case is linked to the accused Golden State Killer, Joseph DeAngelo.