Rubin Carter dies at 76

The famed boxer, who fought under the nickname,
Hurricane, was sentenced to life in prison in 1967
after being convicted of killing three men in a New
Jersey bar the year earlier.

Carter always insisted he was innocent and wasn't
even in the bar but was convicted solely on the
basis of eyewitness accounts from two men, both
who later recanted their testimony.

Bob Dylan wrote one of his most famous protest sons, Hurricane, in 1975 to help raise awareness of
Carter's plight and raise money for his defense.

And
in 1999, Denzel Washington won a Golden Globe Award and an Oscar nomination for his starring role in the film, The Hurricane.

Carter's conviction was finally overturned in 1985,
with the judge slamming New jersey's prosecution
as being wholly on issue of racial bias.

On his
release, Carter had spent 19 years behind bars.

He died in his adopted hometown of Toronto,
Canada. He was 76.