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He was convicted of raping Alice Sebold. Then the case unravelled

By Corina Knoll, Karen Zraick and Alexandra Alter
New York Times·
19 mins to read

Anthony Broadwater was exonerated in the 1981 rape of Alice Sebold, now a best-selling author. When his lawyers saw the trial transcript, they could only wonder what took so long.

The young woman's face was bruised in multiple places, her long brown hair matted with bits of leaves.

There was a fresh bump on the back of her head and a cut on the left side of her nose. Her tan cardigan and Calvin Klein jeans were streaked with dirt.

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