Case Dropped Against Man Convicted Of 1984 Deadly Arson

A man who served a quarter century in prison for arson will soon be released

Cook County prosecutors have dropped the case against a man who has spent the last 25 years in prison.

James Kluppelberg, 46, was convicted of setting fire in 1984 that killed a woman and her five kids in their Back of the Yards home.

Kluppelberg has maintained his innocence from the beginning and after attempts to challenge Kluppelberg’s appeal, Cook County prosecutors told a judge Wednesday they wanted to dismiss the charges.

News of Kluppelberg’s release did not reach him until his lawyer called with the surprising news. The Chicago Tribune reports his lawyer said Kluppelberg was “blown away.”

The fire originally was ruled accidental by the Police Department’s Bomb and Arson Unit, but firefighters changed the cause of the fire to arson.

After an investigation, police arrested and charged Kluppelberg, who police said confessed to the crime after being linked to other fires. His confession was inadmissible in court because of alleged police coercion.

Evidence in a recent reinvestigation of the arson prompted the decision to drop the case.

Kluppelberg was released from prison Thursday afternoon.

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