Name: Cathy Woods to settle wrongful conviction lawsuit against Reno for $3 million
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Cathy Woods to settle wrongful conviction lawsuit against Reno for $3 million

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Reno Gazette JournalView CommentsUpdate&nbsp;6:15 p.m. Aug. 12:&nbsp;The Reno City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved the $3 million settlement payment to Cathy Woods, 41 years after the city's police department arrested her for a murder she didn't commit.Woods spent 35 years in prison before DNA evidence implicated another perpetrator."This is a moment to commemorate the closure of a very important moment in Reno history," Councilwoman Jenny Brekhus said.Councilman Devon Reese said the settlement represents a moment "to say we are&nbsp;sorry.""The truth is we won’t ever be able to right the wrong that was done to Ms.&nbsp;Woods," he said.Original story:The Reno City Council will decide on Aug. 12 whether to approve a $3 million settlement with Cathy Woods, whose arrest by Reno police in 1979&nbsp;resulted in her spending most of her life in prison for a murder she didn't commit.According to Wednesday's meeting agenda, the lawsuit settlement would be paid from the city's risk management fund.Woods was arrested and wrongfully convicted for the 1976 murder of Michelle Mitchell, a 19-year-old University of Nevada, Reno student. Mitchell was found in&nbsp;a garage near the campus with her throat slashed and her hands tied-- a crime that shocked the community and left college students frightened for months.Three years later, Reno police still hadn't solved the murder. Woods, a patient in a psychiatric hospital in Louisiana, told a counselor a vague story about having killed a woman named Michelle in Reno-- a story she made up to get a better room at the institution.Woods was exonerated in 2014, when DNA from a cigarette left at the crime scene matched to&nbsp;a man named Rodney L. Halbower, who has since been sentenced to life in prison for killing two teenagers in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1976.She was released from prison after serving 35 years on the false conviction., Woods moved to Washington and lives in an assisted living center near her family.She filed lawsuits against the city of Reno, Washoe County and the state of Nevada. with Woods for $3 million in 2019. Her is still pending, but Reno City Councilman Devon Reese said the agreement being considered Wednesday also includes a settlement of the lawsuit against the state, which is also expected to pay $3 million."It will hopefully bring closure to a very painful and complex case," Reese said. "Wrongful convictions, forced confessions, and exonerations are some of the most heartbreaking cases to confront.&nbsp;I pray for healing and grace for Cathy Woods."Editor's note: This story was updated at 2:50 p.m. Wednesday to include information from Reese.Anjeanette Damon is the government watchdog reporter for the RGJ. You can reach her at adamon@rgj.com or follow her on Twitter @AnjeanetteDamon. If you care about shining a bright light on decisions made by your elected officials, &nbsp;to the Reno Gazette Journal.View Comments

Reno Gazette JournalView CommentsUpdate&nbsp;6:15 p.m. Aug. 12:&nbsp;The Reno City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved the $3 million settlement payment to Cathy Woods, 41 years after the city's police department arrested her for a murder she didn't commit.Woods spent 35 years in prison before DNA evidence implicated another perpetrator."This is a moment to commemorate the closure of a very important moment in Reno history," Councilwoman Jenny Brekhus said.Councilman Devon Reese said the settlement represents a moment "to say we are&nbsp;sorry.""The truth is we won’t ever be able to...

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Cathy Woods to settle wrongful conviction lawsuit against Reno for $3 million

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