Tyrone Brown is an African-American Texan who was sentenced to a life term in a Texas maximum security prison for stealing two U.S. dollars and smoking marijuana while on probation. He was recently[when?] granted a conditional pardon by Texas Governor Rick Perry. (Under Texas law, the pardon had to first be approved by the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles; Perry could not grant a pardon on his own initiative, though he could have rejected the Board's recommendation.) He was released from prison on March 16, 2007.

He initially took part in a $2 robbery in which no one was hurt and Judge Keith Dean in Dallas, Texas sentenced him to ten years of probation. During that probation he tested positive one time for marijuana and the judge changed his sentence to life in prison. Public outrage arose when this story was aired on 20/20.

Additionally, a series of articles appeared on him in 2006 in the Dallas Morning News. Perhaps even more than the unjust sentence, public outrage came about when the news program contrasted Tyrone's story with a white man named John Alexander Wood. Wood also appeared before Judge Dean and pleaded guilty to shooting an unarmed male prostitute in the back.

Wood was also sentenced to probation. However, Wood repeatedly tested positive for cocaine while on probation and committed other violations. He was arrested for cocaine possession in Waco while driving a car, which was owned by his brother-in-law who also happened to be a United States Congressman.

Prosecutors there didn't press charges because of unspecified evidence problems. He smashed a woman's door in a dispute over a dog, but again the case was dropped.

Similar to 0 things you like: