With his parents, wife, and other relatives sobbing and applauding in the courtroom, Bermudez was led away after the ruling. The 40-year-old remains behind bars for now because of an unrelated federal drug-sale conviction that carried a 27-month sentence. His lawyers plan to ask federal authorities to credit him for the time he has served and release him.
“This is too long, but justice is ours today,’’ his tearful wife, Crystal, said outside court. “He’s a good man. He didn’t deserve to have this happen to him.’’
The ruling bars a retrial, and the Manhattan district attorney’s office had said it wouldn’t pursue one because eyewitnesses have recanted. But prosecutors said they still believe Bermudez is guilty and were examining their options, including a potential appeal.
“We strongly disagree with the judge’s decision,’’ Chief Assistant District Attorney Mark Dwyer said.
Raymond Blount, 16, was killed in the Aug. 4, 1991, shooting. He was gunned down as he left a nightspot near Manhattan’s Union Square after getting into a fight with a teen inside the club.
The other teen identified Bermudez as the gunman, and four eyewitnesses identified him from police photograph files and then a lineup.
Four of Bermudez’s friends testified that he was with them, miles away, at the time of the crime; friends of Blount’s also said Bermudez wasn’t the shooter, according to the judge’s ruling. No forensic evidence linked him to the crime.
