Who is Nick Yarris? Man who spent 22 years on death row – here’s what we know

EVERY day for more than 20 years, Nick Yarris faced the prospect of being killed for a murder he did not commit.

Yarris had been sentenced to death by electric chair after being convicted of the murder, spending years jailed with murderers and psychopaths.

But if he didn't commit the crime, how did he get behind bars in the first place?

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Who is Nick Yarris?

Today, Nick Yarris is a dad, living a quiet life in Yeovil, Somerset - a stark contrast to the the year spent jailed on death row after being convicted of a murder he didn't commit.

Yarris was born in 1961, and grew up with his family in Philadelphia, America.

But his childhood and family life was shattered when he was attacked and raped by a teenage boy.

The trauma of the attack, which he hid from his parents, soon set Yarris on a dangerous path of drink and drugs.

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What did Nick Yarris do to be put behind bars?

It was in 1981 that he was picked up by police, with the young man, then addicted to drugs and alcohol, stopped by an officer after driving through a red light while in a stolen car.

Yarris and the officer became involved in a scuffle with the officer's gun going off - resulting in Yarris being charged with attempted murder.

But it was when he was in custody and read about the rape and murder of a young mum that Yarris' case took a turn for the worse.

The young man decided to make up information about the case, as a way to bargain with authorities, claiming a man he believed to be dead had been involved in the murder.

Telling police he knew what happened to a 32-year-old sales associate, Linda Craig, Yarris said his former drug-addicted friend was responsible for the woman's death.

But when authorities tracked down the accused and found he had not committed the crime, they then turned their attention on Yarris.

Recounting his story, Nick later said: "I was just desperate, a drug-addled kid who didn’t know what to do to get out of jail."

Instead, Nick was charged with the murder and was sent to death row after brief trial in 1982.

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How was Linda May Craig killed?

Linda Craig was kidnapped from the parking lot of a mall in Delaware, near the border of Pennsylvania, on December 15, 1981.

Reported missing by her husband, the woman's 1977 Chrysler Cordoba was found abandoned in a car park about 1.5 miles from a church.

Her shoes were also found at the site.

Craig's body was eventually found less than two miles from her home with authorities finding evidence she had been raped and murdered.

How long was he in jail for?

Nick remained behind bars for 8,057 days, with most of his time served in solitary confinement.

Serving time with serial killers and psychopaths, Nick witnessed the deaths of fellow convicts and even contemplated suicide himself.

Regularly beaten, Nick's only belongings were legal materials, books, toiletries and a small radio.

Spending 14 years without human contact, he would often lie on his arm until it went numb and then use it to rub his face, as though it were someone else.

He was the first man on death row in America to ask for DNA testing, with the man having protested his innocence since being jailed.

It wasn't until a number of DNA tests, many of which proved inconclusive, that Nick was finally set free in 2004.

He was given $4million (£3.2million) in compensation for his wrongful imprisonment.

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How did jail change his outlook on life?

Despite the horrific experiences, Nick said that prison was the "best thing" to happen to him.

He told : "Prison was the best thing that happened to me.

"I have a photograph of the street gang I was in when I was a teenager. There were 27 of us, 26 are dead now.

"Death row saved my life. It taught me everything is a luxury to be treasured."

He later said: "When I got out, I got a mantra from my mother, who sat me down and said that I had to be a polite and kind man from now on and that I had to be kind to women, otherwise it was a waste of coming home."

Having written a book about his experiences, The Fear OF 13: Countdown to Execution: My Fight for Survival on Death Row, Nick's story is now to be made into a Netflix drama as well as a movie.