Randal Padgett
State: Alabama
Convicted: 1992
Exonerated: 1997
Race: Caucasian
DNA used in exoneration? No
Reasons for wrongful conviction:
False or misleading forensic evidence
Prosecutorial misconduct
Randal's Wrongful Conviction
Randal Padgett had a degree from Jacksonville State University and was a successful businessman with no prior criminal record. But then in 1992, he was convicted for the rape and murder of his estranged wife Cathy. The judge overruled the jury’s recommendation of life in prison to give Randal a death sentence. The case against Randal was based almost completely on tainted DNA evidence. In 1995, the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals overturned the conviction, as the state failed to reveal discrepancies in the blood tests that would have aided in Randal’s defense.
In preparation for a second trial, Randal’s family hired a new lawyer, Richard Jaffe, known for providing strong defense for prisoners on death row. The attorney emphasized that more evidence existed incriminating a co-worker, with whom Randal had an affair. In October 1997, Randal was acquitted of all charges.
Randal spent three years on Alabama's death row and another two years in prison for this crime he did not commit before being exonerated in 1997.
Randal's Work Today
Today, Randal lives in Alabama with his wife Brenda, who supported him during his fight for freedom. He credits his strong religious faith in sustaining him through his ordeal, and loves speaking to college students and communities of faith. He is driven by quiet dignity and determined passion to see the death penalty abolished in the country he loves.
Randal is a Peer Specialist at Witness to Innocence, which he notes he enjoys "because I get to stay in frequent contact with like-minded people and people who went through what I went through."
Help Randal support other death row exonerees. DONATE to the Emergency Fund >>
Because of Randal’s experience, he expresses wariness toward the simple way many Americans view the criminal justice system. Prior to his own sentencing, Randal had assumed innocent people were never convicted. “In the good ol’ U.S. of A., I thought that during a trial the truth was foremost and the court endeavors to seek the facts. That isn’t the case. Innocent people are convicted, and once you’re convicted, it’s difficult to find anyone willing to believe otherwise.”
This has driven Randal to try to educate as many people as he can about the flaws of the criminal justice system and just how easy it is to be innocent and still convicted. He sees it as his calling to not only advocate for death penalty abolition, but to enlighten people he strikes up conversation with on the street, in the grocery store, or anywhere else -- who he views as prospective jurors -- to keep an open mind. He also advocates for compensation for the wrongfully convicted.
Join Randal's Fight >>
Randal loves the outdoors and spends time outside as much as he can. He has eight goats and six chickens to provide him with fresh eggs. Publications: Execution’s Doorstep: True Stories of the Innocent and Near Damned
Written by Leslie Lytle
Profiles the stories of Randal Padgett and Ron Keine
"Journalist Lytle brings the capital punishment debate into sharp focus with her account of five men wrongly convicted and sentenced to death but later freed."
Contact Ron Keine at RonKeine[at]Yahoo.com to purchase a book at a discounted rate.
Quest for Justice: Defending the Damned (Second Edition) by Richard S. Jaffe
"Richard Jaffe explores the problems of the American death penalty system through his experience as a capital defense attorney in Alabama."
Jaffe secured the release of both Randal Padgett and Gary Drinkard.
In The Media:
7.28.04 Death Row survivor savors his freedom
1.9.12 One for the books
1.1.16 8 men have walked free from Alabama's death row in 39 years
1.31.18 Justice Reform: "What is three years on death row worth?"
3.5.18 Attempts to carry out the death penalty have gone from bad to worse
3.19.18 Church talk to feature death row exoneree Randal Padgett
8.19.20 Wrongful Conviction with Jason Flom - Randal Padgett
1.6.21 Witness to Innocence Releases #ImLivingProof Video Series
5.16.21 Pursuing Justice Podcast - Witness To Innocence (a nonprofit organization supporting exonerees who were on Death Row) with RANDALL PADGETT PART 1
#ImLivingProof... that we send the innocent to die.