After suffering 17 years of imprisonment for a murder she did not commit, a 59-year-old woman was finally set free on Friday following the decision of a judge that cited the conviction as wrongful due to its strong reliance on a witness later on described as a "habitual liar".

In 1998, Susan Mellen had been found guilty for the murder of her ex-boyfriend in the previous year. As reported by the Los Angeles Times on Friday, the conviction heavily relied on the testimony of the prosecution's star witness named June Patti.

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Based on the witness' account, Mellen allegedly shared with her incriminating remarks pertaining to the murder. These statements were later questioned in a letter sent by the Los Angeles prosecutors following the investigation launched by lawyer Deirdre O'Connor, which revealed significant credibility concerns with the trial's star witness.

In the investigation conducted by the special unit assigned by the district attorney's office to study cases involving habeas corpus, Patti's allegations during the trial had been labeled "doubtful".

"I believe that not only is Ms. Mellen not guilty, I believe, based on what I've read, she's innocent, and for that reason, I believe the criminal justice system has failed," read the decision of Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mark Arnold, as reported by the Times.  

In addition, Arnold stated that Mellen's lawyer during the 1998 trial failed to aptly investigate the star witness presented by the prosecution.

Following the declaration was an outburst of cheers that came from roughly three dozen of Mellen's supporters who attended the hearing, according to the report.

The Times also disclosed that Patti had been identified as an "unreliable informant" five years prior to the trial. This was done following a series of incorrect information she relayed to the Torrance California police department.

Moreover, Patti had been known to be involved in roughly 2,000 cases or calls made in the Washington state, which led Skagit County Public Defender's office to comment that describing her as a dependable witness was "laughable".

Patti died in 2006.

Tagscalifornia, 17 years, Murder, June Patti, Susan Mellen, Mark Arnold, prosecutor, liar