WNBA legend fought to prove man’s innocence. Why is Missouri AG blocking his release?

Jonathan Irons was wrongfully convicted for a 1997 burglary and shooting near St. Charles County. Despite no physical evidence tying him to the crime, Irons has been sitting in prison since he was 16.

In March, Cole County Judge Daniel Green vacated Irons’ 50-year prison sentence and ordered the release of the St. Louis native. Maya Moore, a WNBA legend who has rededicated her life to criminal justice reform, has made freeing Irons her mission, bringing national attention to this miscarriage of justice.

But in Missouri, even all of that is not enough to secure Irons’ freedom.

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s office appealed, but the Missouri Western District Court of Appeals upheld Green’s ruling. Yet Irons remains behind bars.

Attorneys asked for a case transfer to the Missouri Supreme Court. A hearing is set for Tuesday.

Moore, a decorated professional basketball player and two-time Olympic gold medalist, lived in Jefferson City as a child and met Irons while she was in college.

Working on Irons’ behalf, Moore’s godfather discovered that prosecutors had failed to turn over exculpatory evidence to defense attorneys that could have cleared him.

Irons’ legal saga was the spark that compelled Moore to walk away from a storied WNBA career to focus on reforming a justice system that has sent far too many innocent people to jail.

Irons, who has maintained his innocence throughout this ordeal, was 16 when he was arrested and tried as an adult. He was convicted of burglary, assault and armed criminal action a year later by an all-white jury. No DNA or fingerprints linked him to the crime.

The homeowner who was shot during the break-in identified Irons from a police lineup. But the victim’s eyewitness testimony was shaky at best — bullet fragments were lodged in the man’s brain during Irons’ trial.

Fingerprints from the crime scene matched those of the homeowner and an unidentified person, Kent Gipson, an attorney for Irons, said. Gipson has detailed a long list of problems with the prosecution’s case, but the fingerprint that was not Irons’ or the victim’s was central to Green’s ruling.

If the state Supreme Court declines the case, St. Charles County Prosecutor Tim Lohmar would have jurisdiction. He told The Star Editorial Board his office would withhold comment until the higher court rules.

A spokesman for Schmitt’s office would not discuss the case. Attorneys argued in legal documents that Irons was found guilty at trial despite the lack of physical evidence.

The attorney general’s office argued that Green, the judge, overstepped his authority and abused discretion in the case. Multiple legal experts have disputed those assertions during the appeals process.

Schmitt has a sworn duty to uphold the law. The evidence in this case falls woefully short of what should be necessary to find Irons guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Irons has already spent more than two decades behind bars. Why is Schmitt still fighting the judge’s ruling?

Sadly, as Gipson, Irons’ attorney correctly noted, “It takes a lot longer to exonerate an innocent man than it does to convict one.”