A man has been freed from prison after an appellate court overturned his murder conviction in the case of a missing northern Illinois teenager.
Relatives greeted Mario Casciaro Wednesday as he walked out of Menard Correctional Center in southern Illinois.
"It’s a surreal experience, so happy it happened not only for myself but for my family," Casciaro said.
"It feels like this big weight’s been lifted off our shoulders. We’re so happy to have him home and we all look forward to the future,” Casciaro’s sister Joanne said.
Casciaro and the teen both worked at a Johnsburg grocery store. Prosecutors say Casciaro persuaded a third co-worker to confront 17-year-old Brian Carrick over a drug deal debt in 2002.
The other co-worker, Shane Lamb, testified at trial that he punched Carrick, sending the teen falling to the ground unconscious. Carrick's body was never found.
Lamb later recanted, saying he made up the story after prosecutors offered him immunity from a murder charge.
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"Their objective was never to find out exactly what happened to Brian Carrick cause they disregarded all the physical evidence at the crime scene," Casciaro said. "It was irrelevant who went to prison just as long as someone went to prison."
Prosecutors plan to challenge the appellate ruling at the Illinois Supreme Court.
“This case turned down to facts. There’s no evidence against Mario, never was and and the appellate court did such a meticulous job,” said Casciaro’s attorney Kathleen Zellner.
