this one of relatives i believe of sean thomas.an that was wrongly convicted for a murder and he spent 24 years in prison as we take live look from frackville schuylkill county. today, though, sean thomas freedom day set free by help because of exactly that his innocence. so where does he go now? his family members talk on camera and their smiles are a mile wide. he's going down south because philadelphia, well, philadelphia has given him too much heart ache. more coming up tonight at 10:00. >>> the trump administration row he'sed his government congress today the proposals got some deep cuts for social and domestic programs. >> one those programs is snap which gives food stamp to those in need. now the plan could cut close to $200 billion and our joyce evans is in studio tonight after speaking to some who say the cuts would in fact cut them deeply. >> joyce. >> part of the budget director's reasoning has to do with easing the burden on taxpayers and actually helping people figure out ways to get off food stamps. we hear of those c

sean thomas is now leaving at age 43. he was convicted behave on the testimony of two questionable witnesses who had tron lie and inspite of the fact that he couldn't have been involved in the north philadelphia killing because he was in a juvenile detention center at the time. >> they ain't want to believe it. the facts was there. they didn't want to see that. they want what they want. >> reporter: his attorney and the pennsylvania innocence project saw what other doctors not for eight years they worked the case until with the da' office now on board the conviction this morning was thrown out. >> he cep digging. kept writing, digging lookin log for missing pieces they didn't want to give us. >> the head of the pennsylvania innocence project says there are other innocent people locked up and the mix takes that led to sean's convict hold loss sense for the future. >> we find out how did the system go wrong? what happened in the system that was an error. >> what hurts the most serving twenty four years not being there when

. >> but now sean thomas is about to walk out as a free and innocent man. fox 29's dawn timmeney is live in schuylkill county where the philadelphia man is about to gain his heart fought freedom. dawn. >> reporter: he sure s lucy. his attorney, his fiance', and a member of the pennsylvania innocence project just pulling into the prison moments ago trying to secure misery he's this has been a hard fought battle and one that comes with lots of excitement. >> it's a great day. sean thomas is finally going walk free after 24 years in prison for a crime did he not commit. >> reporter: attorney james, working nearly 900 hours over eight years pro bono for the pennsylvania innocence project to prove sean thomas' innocence. the now 43-year-old was convicted at the age of 19 of shooting and killing a man in his car during a robbery on the corner of sixth and lehigh in 1990. a judge finally vacating thomas' sentence and murder conviction at a hearing this morning after the philadelphia da's conviction review unit reopen the case last fall at the request of the innoce

. >> reporter: that's for sure his name is sean thomas he's been in prison since knee 93.al cop the deckert law firm and pennsylvania innocence project set out to prove his innocence ton night it appears that they have. >> put it in the hands of god and kept saying everything will be okay. >> it took 24 years but hazel thomas may be right her sean thomas convicted for a murder in 1999 is expecte expected to be exonerated tomorrow and set free thanks to attorney james and the pennsylvania innocence project. he spent 900 showers reviewing the case and determined that thomas wasn't the killer. he was fingered by two men who testified against him in exchange for leniency in their own cases. meanwhile ron smith amy tell university student back who who actually witnessed the murder and had a different account was never called. >> i would think that's correct you know, a person that was the eyewitness and alerted police would not be discounted that quickly. >> they formed a picture of how this murder happened and they were stick to go that. and they didn't seem to want to hear an

she's a long-time friend of sean thomas's family but she's only seen him in prison.that is changing. >> it's going to be a good feeling. >> reporter: a good feeling and a long time coming. nbc 10 was on the scene of the murder back in 1990 for which thomas was convicted. a bullet right through the window on this street. but he insisted he was four miles away. now being held in custody for an attempted theft of a

sean thomas could walk out a freeman this afternoon thanks to the witness who would not give up. as was convicted in 1994 of a murder based on the testimony of two questionable witnesses, but a witness who actually saw the shooting had a very different version, and was never asked to testify. even more doubts, thomas was said to be in a juvenile detention center on a theft allegation at the time of the shooting. path innocence project and attorney james figuresky talk to thomas and knew that they had a case. >> he said that there was no evidence, and i said well, it is a murder conviction there has to be some physical evidence or something. nothing. >> he made me feel real good. i finally have him back. >> mother could welcome home her son soon. it is expect that the d.a.'s office will recommend to the judge that sean thomas be released right away. if a judge signs off he could be released as early as this afternoon. he was 16 years old, at the time of the crime. >> so does the guy that says he saw it happened but then wasn't part of the court proceeding which is shocking, he is s

reporter dann cuellar is live in northeast philadelphia after meeting shor sean thomas. >> he decidedhave his first free meal at a red lobster with his fiance and lawyers. >> he was all smile ps celebrating with his fiance and lawyers from the innocence project. >> how does he feel? >> wonderful. i can't feel no better. you have to believe in god and get a great legal team and keep fighting. >> he was arrested at the age of 19 for the murder of a businessman. his mother and sister said they were with him, but nobody would believe them. finally today a judge threw out the conviction after the d.a. agreed with his lawyers that the evidence against him didn't support the conviction. >> it was maz amazing. a lot of hard work went into it. we thought this would never happen but it final happened. >> thomas says he has no grudge against authority. >> what for? life is too short. you can't get it back. just move forward. >> his first meal was to have the ultimate feast at red lobster and he used the cellphone for the first time. >> it feels funny, but it was a wonderful thing. >> that's the

she's a long-time friend of sean thomas's family but she's only seen him in prison. as of today, that is changing. >> it's going to be a good feeling. >> reporter: a good feeling and a long time coming. nbc 10 was on the scene of the murder back in 1990 for which thomas was convicted. a bullet right through the window on this street. but he insisted he was four miles away. now being held in custody for an attempted theft of a motorcycle. his attorney says that fundamental discrepancy stood out. >> what he said basically is true. >> as for the attorneys and the innocence project dug deeper, they said witness accounts were never seen. >> thomas' fiance got to call his mother this morning offering the news of his eminent release after a judge vacated his sentence. >> they knew this day was coming. >> reporter: and today it finally did. thomas's mother says he spent the last 24 years in the library studying every legal option but ultimately his work combined with the work of outside lawyers to free him including lawyers from the same district attorney's office that origi

have been some physical evidence or scientific evidence and there wasn't. >> reporter: turns out sean thomas the night before the murder accused of trying to steal a motorcycle. when the murder occurred the neck morning, sean was with his mother at a youth detention center off the ben franklin parkway. but somehow the records verifying that disappeared. and ron smith the witness his version was different and he was never asked to testify. >> i was told that my testimony wasn't consistent with other witnesses. and i wouldn't be needed. i would think that, you know, a person that was the eyewitness and alerted the police would not be discounted that picture. >> they form a picture how this murder happened and they were stick to go that and they didn't seem to want to hear anything else that interfered with that picture. >> one of the men who claimed sean was involved later recanted the story. at the request of the pennsylvania innocence project the da's conviction review unit reopen the case last fall and on tuesday, expected to ask a judge for sean's release. james, spent 900 hours investigat

. >> after 24 years behind bars in schuylkill county sean thomas walked away a free man, on tuesday.parently he never lost hope. >> sean thomas was 19 when he was sent to life in prison for whether he walked into the- arms of his fiancee, sean thomas convicted of aking part in the murder every businessman in north philadelphia, in 1990, based on the testimony of two questionable witnesses. what's more, he had long claimed that he was at a juvenile detention center at the time of the crime. in the years that followed, his lawyer began working with the pennsylvania innocence project, and this year the conviction review unit of the district attorney's office found new evidence leading to his release. >> okay, sean, welcome to "good day" philadelphia. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> and we have your mother here, hazeline. >> yes. >> very nice to see you. >> so people at home, what are you doing now? look at this gigantic purple table. so what do you miss for breakfast, 24 years without it, probably? >> eggs, grits, you know, normal stuff. >> you want grits? >> yes. >> you got grits

the action cam was there for 43-year-old sean thomas' first meal outside of prison last night.mas celebrated at red lobster in northeast philadelphia with his fiancÉe and his lawyers from the pennsylvania innocence project. >> i feel wonderful. a free man. i can't feel no better. hey, man, just got to believe in god and have the right legal team and keep fighting. >> thomas served 24 years in prison for the shooting death of a puerto rican businessman in 1990. thomas maintained his innocence for years saying he was being held at a juvenile center for an unrelated offense at the time of the crime. lawyers helped argue his case and a judge vacated his conviction yesterday. >> new this morning a plane engine catches fire at newark airport prompting a temporary closure. >> caught on camera. a zoo animal throws a cement block at visitors. david. >> 55 degrees on the bus stop this morning and only 56 by 8 o'clock. so, not a lot of change there and many of us are looking at showers. you might want to arm the kids with a poncho or perhaps an umbrella on the way in. this afternoon short

one of the first things that sean thomas did when he was released in schuylkill county was hug his mother. the philadelphia innocence project helped convince a judge to vacate his conviction for a 1990 killing. thomas claimed at the time of the murder he was being held at the old youth study center for trying to steal a motorcycle. >> been a struggle. hard struggle. just can't give up. >> i'm thankful that i'm here to really see him walk out that gate. that's all i want. >> with his fiancee by his side, thomas says he hopes to start a new life down south. his first meal after he got out was at red lobster on roosevelt boulevard. then he headed to a celebration with his family. >> it's a blessing. it's a blessing. definitely a blessing to have my brother back home. >> feel wonderful. you know, feel like i never left. >> hear more coming up at 6:00 this morning when we'll talk to him about his fight for freedom and dreams for the future. >>> 4:34 on this wednesday. now to stories that we'll be following throughout the day -- jurors will begin their first full day of deliberations in the cam

sean thomas stood outside the state correctional institution in schuylkill county yesterday afternoon. earlier in the day the philadelphia district attorney 's office vacated his conviction and life sentence. thomas told "eyewitness news" that he is now looking ahead. >> i have my mom, my nephews, something that i didn't do, before i will do now when i was a teenager. now that i'm a grown man. >> in 1994 thomas was sentenced to mandatory life without parole for 1990 murder for a man in north philadelphia lawyers with the pennsylvania innocence project helped free thomas using evidence that prosecutors haven't seen before. next month the district attorney's office will hold a hearing to decide if they will retry thomas for that case. >>> a rowan university fraternity is offering a reward for authorities saying their house was set on fire. flames consumed the house and several cars on hamilton road in glassboro last week. people escape the flames. authorities have ruled the fire arson and now frat is offering a $2,000 reward for any information leading to an arrest. police say a wooden

. >> sean thomas will have a court hearing today to determine the time of his release.n 1994, a jury convicted thomas of murder. authorities threw out the conviction in 2015 after a witness admitted to lying about thomas' role in the killing. his mother said thomas fought every day in prison to clear his name. >> i'm proud because not only did he just sit in the jail and do nothing, but he knew he was innocent and did something about it. >> lawyers who helped thomas said while they couldn't get back the last 24 years of his life, they could give him a future. >>> today, new jersey state police will honor four of its fallen heroes at a memorial service in monmouth county. they will pay tribute to sean cullen, lieutenant william ferin, and state trooper frankie williams. cullen and williams died in separate car accidents in south jersey over the last year. >>> a senior corrections officer, nick semens, will also be remembered at the service. >>> a man is under arrest after a video shows him mocking and sucker punching a man with sailwith cerebral palsy. >> coming up, the

. >> sean thomas woke up with the freedom to choose what he would do for the first time in 24 years. >> sean was a guest on nbc 10 news today and it was there that he shared his story and his own words. afterwards -- >> you're free to do what you want. it was 1990. he was convicted of murdering a man. he was sentenced to life. >> i knew in my heart it was coming. you know, i didn't know when. >> for 24 years he prayed, held onto hope, to his family and his case. attorneys got a judge to overturn the conviction on the fact that sean who was being held at the study center at the time couldn't have committed the murder. >> you appreciate it more better. >> he tells many we he is most looking forward to making up on lost time with family that stood by his side. >> reporter: so what's next? he tells me he needs to get new clothes. he is looking forward to spending time with his family. he and his fiance have a wedding to plan. certainly a lot to look forward to. i'm pamela osborne, nbc 10 news. there is no indication why this person was walking on a busy highway in the first place. >>> the

he saw him, his name sean thomas. once again freeman. mas was convicted of shooting and killing domingo martin nest november of 1990. that conviction was based on testimony from questionable witnesses. in fact, there was one witness who said look he didn't do it but they never used him. thomas was actually in a juvenile detention center at the time of the murder. so it was the work of the pennsylvania innocence project that eventually convinced the philadelphia d.a.'s office to agree to reverse that conviction. amazingly, thomas says, he doesn't hold a grudge. >> if i hold a grudge, i ain't going to never grow. i'm upset? ya, but you know, time will heal all wound, that's why you got to keep fighting. you know, to the machine project, and to the day, i'm one of the innocent people that believed in me, that fought for me, fought with me. >> words to live by. thomas' legal journey not over yet. prosecutors could choose to refile charges against him in the coming weeks, that's very unlikely, as for his future, alex and mike he received a cul

sean thomas is once again a free man this morning. he left the state prison in schuylkill county. so here is the story. thomas was convicte of shooting and killing domingo martin nest november of 1990. that conviction was based on testimony from questionable witnesses. thomas was actually in a juvenile detention center at the time of the murder. it was the work of the pennsylvania innocence project that eventually convinced the philadelphia d.a.'s office to agree to reverse the constriction. >> that's why you got to keep fighting. you know, to the innocent project, i'm one of the people that believed in me, fought for me, fought with me. >> now thomas' legal journey is not over yet. prosecutors could choose to refile charges against him in the coming weeks. now, as for his future, sean received a culinary degree while in prison, considering becoming a chef. he's also engage today a woman he met, while serving time in prison. >> right as it clicks over, breaking news coming in, we just have a report from the ap that manchester police s

. >> after more than two decades behind bars, sean thomas is getting a new chance at freedom in a fewnutes. he was found guilty of murdering in 1994 but his attorneys and his family have been fighting ever since to clear his name. after hearing the evidence and arguments the judge in fact vacated his conviction and will walk out of prison this afternoon. coming up tonight at 5:00 we'll tell you what happens next in this remarkable case. and there may be a new tool in the fight against some cancers and what it is and discovering the body's own immune system. we'll see you guys at 5:00. >> thank you. >>> well, we are just hour as way from the dances with the stars season 24 finale. tonight the show is turning back the clock 30-years to celebrate a ground breaking film. alicia vitarelli in the middle of it all live if hollywood with the details. hi alicia. >> reporter: hey guys, it's a two and a half hour finale. one republic will perform and a tribute to dirty dancing three decaded later there is a brand new abc movie premiering tonight night on abc. and they are inviting nicole scherzi

. >> reporter: turns out sean thomas was arrested nate before accused of trying to steel a motorcycle. when murder occurred the next morning sean was with his mother at youth detention center off ben franklin parkway but somehow record verifying that disappeared and ron smith the witness his version was different and he was never asked to testify. >> i was told that my testimony wasn't consistent with other witnesses, and i wouldn't be needed. i would think a person that was the eyewitness and alerted the police would be not be discount that had quickly. >> they formed a picture of how this murder happened and they were sticking to that and they didn't seem to want to hear anything that interfered with that picture. >> reporter: one of the men who claimed shawn was involved later recanted the story. at the request of the pennsylvania innocence project the philadelphia d.a.'s conviction review unit reopened the case last fall and on tuesday is expect to ask a judge for sean's release james figuresky spent 900 hours investigating this case pro bono. >> how do you feel. >> i feel great.

. >> reporter: sean thomas was arrested nate before accused of trying to steel a met or cycle. when murder occurred next morning sean was with his mother at youth detention center off ben franklin parkway but somehow record verifying that disappeared and ron smith the witness his version was different and he was never asked to testify. >> i was told that my testimony wasn't consistent with other witnesses and i wouldn't be needed. i would think that a person that was the eyewitness, in an alert to the police would not be discount that had quickly. >> they informed a picture of how this murder happened and they were sticking to that and they didn't seem to want to hear anything else, to interfere with that. >> reporter: one of the men later recanted the story. at request of the pennsylvania innocence project the philadelphia's d.a. conviction revisit unit reopened the case last fall and tuesday expected to ask a judge for sean's release. james figuresky spent 900 hours investigating this case pro bono. how are you feeling? >> i feel great. we are all happy. >> reporter: no one ha

tonight sean thomas is out of prison after he was finally able to prove his innocence. cameras were rolling during the emotional moments that thomas was freed. >> his first taste of freedom since the 1990s when a jury wrongfully convicted him of murder. fox 29's brad sattin is live in frackville, schuylkill county where thomas walk out this evening. a moment that's been a long time coming, brad. >> reporter: yeah, how long he actually went in at the age of 19. he left a little while ago at the age of 43. we asked him what's the first thing he's going to do? he says have a seafood din are in with his attorney as you can imagine he was all smiles tonight. leaving prison a free man for the first time in 24 years. stepping out of the car with his famiy to talk to fox 29 live at 6:00. >> how does it feel? >> it feels great to be home. to be back. >> it was 1993 when at age 19 thomas was arrested and later convicted of a murder in north philadelphia. the case based on the testimony of two questionable witnesses who had reason to lie while ignoring completely this man who happ

. >> sean thomas will have a hearing today to determine the time of his release.94, a jury convicted thomas of murder. authorities threw out the conviction in 2015 after a witness admitted to lying about thomas' role in that killing. his mother said thomas fought every day in prison to clear his name. >> i'm proud because not only did he just sit in jail and do nothing, but he knew he was innocent and did something about it. >> lawyers who helped thomas said that while they couldn't get back the last 24 years of his life, they could give him a future. >>> new, a half glass of wine a day may increase a woman's risk of breast cancer. that's according to data from more than 100 studies of 12 million women. drinking half a glass a day increased breast cancer risk by 5% in younger women and 9% in post menopausal women. exercise appears to lower the risk of the disease. >>> watch this video of an unusual rescue in florida. see the boat -- this is near ft. myers beach. there's no one on board. the men inside were thrown into the water, and the boat garnspeeding out -- bo

sean thomas is once again a free man. >> fox 29 was there, as he left the state prison, in schuylkillas was convicted of shooting and killing domingo martinez in november of 1990. that conviction was based on testimony from questionable witnesses. thomas was actually in a juvenile detention center at this time of the -- at the time of the murderment it was the work of the pennsylvania innocence project, that eventually convinced the philadelphia d.a.'s office to agree to reverse that conviction. >> that's. >> why you got to keep fighting. to the innocent project, goes up to the day, i mess with one of the people that believed in me, that fought for me, fought with me. >> now, a free man, as for his future, sean received a culinary degree while in prison, and he's considering becoming a chef. the other big news, he is engaged to a woman he met while serving time. >> congratulations. 4:37. the jury deciding the fate of south jersey father on trial for killing his three year old son. prosecutors say david creato should spend the rest of his life in prison. but the defense argues there is

thomas making the call to sean? president trump, would you like to see the president of the united states at the vatican with the pope? the president and a pope, a p and and a p. another high profile meetingment look at that, happened few hours ago, by the way, there is the first lady, oh, she decides to wear -- all right. first daughter ivanka was there, her husband, jared, i don't see them. anyway the pontiff spoke privately with donald trump for about 30 minute, behind closed doors. they also exchanged gifts, president trump getting pope francis books written by doctor martin luther king, jr. okay. the pontiff giving donald trump a medal, and three papal document, that define his papacy. and priorities. >> sounds like gave him homework. >> this is what i am about and what i plan to do. take note. >> read up. then come back. >> all right, 7:17. here is sue serio. >> we are looking ahead to the holiday weekend, and remembering the reason we have the holiday is of course memorial day, to remember those who died in s

. >>> sean thom aaa philadelphia man in -- thomas, a philadelphia man in prison for nearly a quarter century for a crime he did not commit, could be free by tomorrow. he could have a court hearing today to determine his time of release. in 1994, a jury convicted thomas of murder. the case was thrown out in 2015 after a witness admitted to lying about thomas' role in the killing. >> i'm proud because not only did he just sit in the jail and do nothing, he knew he was innocent, and he did something about it. >> lawyers who helped thomas said that while they couldn't get back the last 24 years of his life, they could give him a future. >>> penn state's trustees the meet next week to go over recommendations for changing the greek system following the hazing deaths of timothy piazza, a fraternity pledge from north jersey. he drank a dangerous amount of alcohol, fell downstairs, and lay there for 12 hours before fraternity brothers called 911. 18 members face criminal charges. >>> police in chester county arrested a man seen on camera punching a man with cerebral palsy. on the video, he's

pierre thomas, what do you make of this? sean spicer asked directly several times in this press briefing if, in fact, president trump recorded that conversation, that meeting. he side stepped it completely. >> you're right. he was asked repeatedly to answer the question whether there are recording devices at the white house taping conversations. he would not answer. asked repeatedly, he would not answer. we're left to wonder. we just don't have the answer. in fairness to the white house we should also point out in terms of this conversation about whether trump asked comey for loyalty, the white house is saying that did not happen. a question of taping a huge issue developed and we got no zblfgs you were in the briefing room watching sean spicer carry these questions not only about whether president trump was taping the conversations with people around them without their knowledge but also on whether or not sean spicer has all the facts when he's up there briefing the american people. >> all from these extraordinary tweets this mo

breathing with sean spicer and it problems that thomas is to be lively. the president -- and it promises to be lively. the president made tweets and went after the media, democrats, in addition to threatening the fbi -- former fbi director. he is on the attack and offensive and it's not backing down. vonnie: we have entered anything from james comey yet. has he hired advisers, is he talking to people in the fbi community? when james exited, he sent out a letter that was a class act move and how proud he was to serve and please do not dwell on the circumstances around my firing. please continue to serve the institution. he has a lot of detractors. he was unpopular on both side of the aisle on some figures. yet a lot of big supporters out there. expected side of the story to get out as well. the circumstances. why would a sitting fbi director tell the president, no you are not under investigation as donald trump claims. expect more that the eye to push that mrs. forward. not to mention the integrity of an independent investigative agency at the heart of the

thomas. >>> joining me now, former assistant u.s. attorney in new york. nick ackerman, who also served as a special watergate prosecutor. sean turner was deputy press secretary in the obama white hous sharon is an investigative porter at the "new york times." robert served as senio communications adviser to the bush/cheney presidential campaign and now an msnbc political analyst. nick, you have the home-court advantage. let's start with you. >> sure. >> in the face of the fbi and congressional investigations, there's talk about expanding teams with lawyers, including the president bringing in his personal attorney. can the white house corner this off, separate it, put it to the side, and continue to lead and get to the agenda? you were intimately involved in how everything went down with watergate. how big of a cloud does this place over the white house? >> a huge cloud. each of these people, as they get called in by the special counsel, are going to have to have their own private lawyers. there's going to be an agreement among the lawyers, joint defense agreement, so they can all speak together. they're going to tell their

thomas. eric, fellow at the washington institute. also a former nsc senior director in the state department's office and numerous roles over 16 years in three administrations. seany press secretary on foreign policy in the obama white house. great to have you all here. ambassador, the israeli ambassador issued a statement, as well, saying israel has full confidence in intelligence sharing with the u.s. looks forward to deepening the relationship in the years ahead under president trump. so publicly, obviously, officials are saying everything is all good with our intelligence and our relationship. but there are other reports that israeli intelligence officers were poboiling mad and demandin answers. which do you think is correct? >> both are probably correct. the issue is which is most important? the most important are the statements both from the ambassador and the defense minister that represent prime minister netanyahu's view. he wants to keep on with trump. trump is about to arrive. he doesn't want, i guess, a messy stain on the u.s./israeli carpet as this important visit goes ahead. so that makes sense. individual israeli intelligence officers are obviously

kellyanne conway and sean spicer would take exception to that description, but i will ask for them to come on so we can continue that kind of a conversation, though, but thank you so much, thomasng on. i appreciate it. >> you're welcome. >>> coming up, more on our breaking news. an awkward moment as the president and israeli prime minister -- as the president and the israeli prime minister face the media. president trump commenting on the reports that he revealed classified information to russian officials inside the oval office. we'll have much more on this coming up. thanks for the ride around norfolk! and i just wanted to say, geico is proud to have served the military for over 75 years! roger that. captain's waiting to give you a tour of the wisconsin now. could've parked a little bit closer... it's gonna be dark by the time i get there. geico®. proudly serving the military for over 75 years. ready or not, here i come.ek.) ♪ anyone can dream. making it a reality is the hard part. northrop grumman command and control systems always let you see the complete picture. and we're looking for a few dreamers to join us. >>> some republicans are now publicly creating some distance