TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Azya Thornton on Jun 25, 2025

A Tennessee man whose conviction was overturned after spending 17 years in prison now faces the possibility of being reincarcerated, WSMV reports. Thomas Clardy was convicted in 2007 for a 2005 murder at an auto body shop in Madison based on a delayed, cross-racial eyewitness identification. A federal judge overturned his conviction in 2023, leading to his release. However, this month, the state filed a motion to return him to prison after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review a 6th Circuit Court of Appeals decision reversing the lower court’s ruling. Clardy’s case has been remanded to federal district court for further consideration. His attorneys have filed petitions for exoneration and commutation, both of which would have to be granted by Gov. Bill Lee.