Detroit approves $5.8 million settlement for man exonerated after 15 years

Overview

Updated Aug 26

Aaron Salter served 15 years in prison for a murder he didn't commit. On July 14, 2026, the Detroit City Council voted to pay him $5.8 million to settle the federal lawsuit he filed against the city and the detective who built the case against him.

The payout is the second wrongful-conviction settlement the council has approved this year. In April it authorized $4 million for LaVone Hill, who spent 22 years in prison. Both cases involved police work that prosecutors later concluded fabricated or withheld evidence.

Why it matters

Detroit has committed $9.8 million this year to settle two wrongful-conviction suits, and more claims are pending — a growing bill for past police misconduct.

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Key Indicators

$5.8M

Salter settlement amount

Approved by City Council on July 14, 2026, paid after Salter and his lawyers execute releases.

$9.8M

Wrongful-conviction settlements in 2026

Combined $5.8 million for Salter and $4 million for LaVone Hill.

$75M

Original lawsuit claim

Federal civil rights claim Salter filed against Detective Donald Olsen and the city in 2018.

15 years

Time Salter served

Freed on his 36th birthday in August 2018 after his conviction was voided.

250 lbs vs. 150 lbs

Discrepancy between Salter and described shooter

Salter was 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds; the shooter was described as 5-foot-7 and 150 to 170 pounds.

Voices

Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.

Ever wondered what historical figures would say about today's headlines?

People Involved

Aaron Salter

Exonerated plaintiff

Settlement approved; awaiting payment after executing releases

Donald Olsen

Retired Detroit Police detective

Qualified immunity denied; city settling on his behalf

Kym Worthy

Wayne County Prosecutor

Presiding prosecutor; CIU founder

Wolf Mueller

Salter's attorney

Represented Salter in federal lawsuit

Jamar Luster

Eyewitness in the 2003 shooting

Identified Salter from a single photo; later testified he also picked another suspect

Organizations Involved

Detroit City Council

Municipal legislative body

Approved the Salter and Hill settlements

The seven-member legislative body that authorizes payments to resolve lawsuits against the city.

Detroit Police Department

Municipal police department

Employment of Detective Donald Olsen at the center of the case

The city police force whose detective conducted the suggestive identification that led to Salter's conviction.

Wayne County Prosecutor's Office Conviction Integrity Unit

Prosecutorial review unit

Reopened and voided Salter's conviction

A unit that reviews claims of wrongful conviction and reopens questionable cases.

Michigan Innocence Clinic

University legal clinic

Associated with freeing 44 wrongfully convicted people

University of Michigan Law School clinic that works to free the wrongly convicted.

Timeline

August 2003 July 2026

9 events Latest: July 14th, 2026 · 3 months ago

Tap a bar to jump to that date

July 2026
Council approves $5.8 million Salter settlement
Latest Settlement

Detroit City Council authorizes payment to Salter, resolving his lawsuit against the city and Detective Olsen.
July 14th, 2026
April 2026
Council approves $4 million Hill settlement
Settlement

Detroit agrees to pay LaVone Hill after he spent 22 years in prison on a wrongful conviction.
April 15th, 2026
May 2025
Full court declines rehearing
Legal

Sixth Circuit refuses to rehear the case en banc, clearing the way for trial or settlement.
May 25th, 2025
March 2025
Sixth Circuit affirms ruling
Legal

Appeals court upholds the denial of qualified immunity on the Brady claim.
March 21st, 2025
June 2022
District court denies detective qualified immunity
Legal

Court rejects fabrication claims but lets the withheld-evidence claim proceed against Olsen.
June 30th, 2022
October 2018
Salter files $75 million federal lawsuit
Legal

Salter sues Detective Olsen and the city under federal civil rights law, alleging fabricated and withheld evidence.
October 2018
August 2018
Salter exonerated and released
Legal

Conviction voided after the Conviction Integrity Unit review; Salter freed on his 36th birthday after 15 years.
August 15th, 2018
December 2003
Salter convicted of murder
Legal

At 21, Salter convicted three months after the shooting, based largely on one eyewitness identification.
December 2003
August 2003
Shooting kills Willie Thomas, wounds two others
Incident

Three people shot on a porch in east Detroit; Thomas dies, Jamar Luster and Michael Payne survive.
August 6th, 2003

Scenarios

Salter settlement closes with formal dismissal

Likely Resolves by End of 2026

Discussed by: Eastern District of Michigan docket and Detroit City Council records

Salter and his lawyers must execute releases before the city pays. Once that happens, both sides are expected to move to dismiss the federal case, ending the lawsuit Salter filed in 2018. The court docket should show a stipulation of dismissal within months.

Detroit approves another wrongful-conviction settlement

Possible Resolves by Jul 14, 2027

Discussed by: BridgeDetroit and Detroit City Council meeting records

Detroit has settled two wrongful-conviction suits in 2026, and other cases are advancing through federal court. The city may approve additional payouts as more claims reach trial or mediation. Watch the council's meeting records for new settlement resolutions.

Michigan refills wrongful conviction compensation fund

Uncertain Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: Prison Legal News and Michigan legislature records

Salter qualified for more than $700,000 from Michigan's wrongful conviction compensation fund, which was already strained by 2020. Payments to Salter and others could exhaust it, forcing the state legislature to appropriate more money or raise the statutory cap. Whether lawmakers act depends on the fund's balance and budget priorities.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

April 1989 – December 2014

Central Park Five (1989–2014)

Five Black and Latino teenagers were convicted in 1990 of assaulting and raping a jogger in New York's Central Park. Their confessions were coerced, and no physical evidence linked them to the attack. DNA testing in 2002 matched the crime to Matias Reyes, a convicted serial rapist, and the convictions were vacated.

Then

The five men were released and formally exonerated after the 2002 DNA match.

Now

New York City paid the five $41 million in 2014, drawing national attention to police and prosecutorial failures in wrongful conviction cases.

Why this matters now

Like Detroit's recent payouts, the settlement came years after the injustice and reflected how cities compensate exonerees when police misconduct is exposed.

July 1984 – June 1995

Ronald Cotton (1984–1995)

In 1984, Jennifer Thompson identified Ronald Cotton as the man who raped her. He was convicted largely on her eyewitness testimony despite a strong alibi. DNA testing in 1995 excluded Cotton and matched Bobby Poole, who confessed. Cotton had served 11 years.

Then

Cotton was exonerated and released in 1995.

Now

The case became a landmark example of eyewitness misidentification, the leading cause of wrongful convictions in the U.S., and drove reforms to police identification procedures.

Why this matters now

Salter's conviction rested on a single suggestive photo identification, the same failure that sent Cotton to prison.