An exonerated Florida man who was sprung from prison after wrongfully serving 33 years is back behind bars for attempted murder, authorities said.
Edward Clayton Taylor, 57, was tearful and jubilant last month after a judge tossed his conviction for raping a 4-year-old girl in 1986 after his attorneys fought the conviction for more than a decade.
But he now faces the prospect of another lengthy prison term after police said he shot a man during a dispute this week.
Taylor’s heartbroken mother said he quickly sank back into risky associations after his release.
“Oh my God. I am so numb, I am just numb,” she told the Florida Times Union. “I don’t know what to say. I fought so long to get him home, something he did not do and he came out and spent this time with obviously the wrong people.”
The incident in Jacksonville Beach was caught on camera and police found bullet holes in Taylor’s car during an attempt to question him about the shooting.
Cops said the video showed Taylor walking toward the victim and blasting him in the chest.
As he attempted to flee, several males pulled out guns and began shooting at his car. Police said the damage to Taylor’s vehicle was consistent with what took place in the video.
Taylor has denied being the gunman in the incident and requested an attorney, cops said.
The lifelong Florida resident was originally granted parole in 2019 before his conviction was tossed entirely just last month.
The Florida State Attorney’s Office conviction review unit stood by its advocacy of Taylor on the child rape case this week after Taylor’s arrest.
“In the three years since his release, the CIR thoroughly investigated the matter and discovered evidence that had not been disclosed to Taylor’s defense,” the agency said in a statement. “This failure, in conjunction with other errors and the victim’s recantation, informed the State’s decision to consent to Taylor’s post-conviction motion. We stand by the CIR’s work in that case, which can be found in detail here.”
Taylor was arrested at age 21 after a neighbor’s 4-year-old child tested positive for gonorrhea and later indicated that he had abused her during a sleepover.
But the Innocence Project lobbied for his release beginning in 2010, asserting that the confused child was vague in her accusations and that there was no DNA evidence linking her to Taylor.
He is now being held in Duval County jail on $1.1 million bond and has a court date of July 18.
