Kentucky man Jeffrey Clark ‘framed’ by cops in ‘satanic’ murder awarded $24.35M — as real killer still on the loose
A Kentucky man who was wrongfully convicted of a “satanic killing” 30 years ago has recently been awarded a record $24.35 million payout. Jeffrey Clark, who spent 22.5 years behind bars before his conviction was overturned in 2016, accused law enforcement officials and a former coroner of conspiring against him. Last Wednesday, he was granted the substantial payout along with $75,000 in damages, marking the end of a long legal battle.
Clark and his friend Keith Hardin were wrongly convicted in 1995 for the murder of Rhonda Sue Warford, Hardin’s girlfriend. Warford was found dead in a field with multiple stab wounds after leaving her Louisville home in the early hours of April 2, 1992. The case took a dark turn when Warford’s mother mentioned her daughter’s supposed connections to Satanism, leading authorities to focus on Hardin and Clark, who were both 21 at the time.
Despite Clark’s claims of innocence and alibi, he was arrested based on questionable evidence, including a fingerprint of Warford found in his car. Prosecutors alleged that Hardin was involved in satanic practices, presenting a blood-soaked cloth and broken glass from his home as evidence. Throughout the trial, witnesses testified against Clark, with his ex-girlfriend claiming he had satanic tattoos and engaged in animal sacrifices.
The case against Clark and Hardin eventually fell apart when DNA testing proved that a hair found on Warford’s body did not match Hardin. In 2016, their convictions were overturned, leading Clark to file a lawsuit against former Meade County Sheriff Joseph Greer and coroner Bill Adams for their role in manipulating evidence to secure his wrongful conviction.
Adams had altered the date of Warford’s death to match Clark’s alibi, despite medical evidence suggesting a different timeline. Clark’s attorney, Elliot Slosar, emphasized that his client had suffered greatly as a result of being framed for a crime he did not commit. While the legal battle has brought some closure to Clark, the real killer of Rhonda Sue Warford remains at large.
The multi-million dollar payout serves as a bittersweet victory for Jeffrey Clark, who lost over two decades of his life behind bars for a crime he did not commit. His lawyers hope that the settlement will bring some measure of justice to Clark and highlight the flaws in the criminal justice system that led to his wrongful conviction.
