Pratt, Julius Butler, was an informant to the FBI and the Los Angeles Police Department. The state appealed the decision, but an appeals court in 1999 ruled this fact to be "'favorable' to the defendant, 'suppressed' by a law enforcement agency, and 'material' to the jury's decision to convict;" it upheld the decision to vacate the conviction, freeing him. On July 24, 1997, Pratt returned to his hometown of Morgan City, Louisiana, to see his aged mother, Eunice. He had not seen her in 23 years, since she rode a bus to visit him at Folsom Prison. In 1998, Pratt's long time friend and attorney Johnnie L. Cochran, Jr., filed a federal civil lawsuit against the FBI and the LAPD, accusing them of malicious prosecution and false imprisonment. With the help of Brian T. Dunn, another attorney at The Cochran Firm, the suit was settled for $4.5 million. A federal judge approved the settlement of the civil suit: the City of Los Angeles paid $2.75 million of the settlement and the US Department of Justice paid the remaining $1.75 million. Later years Pratt continued to work until his death on behalf of men and women wrongfully convicted. He participated in rallies in support of Mumia Abu-Jamal, whom he had met when both were active as Black Panthers. In his later years, he moved to Tanzania, where he was living at the time of his death. References Sources Olsen, Jack. Last Man Standing: The Tragedy and Triumph of Geronimo Pratt''. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group (2000) External links 2000 radio interview of Geronimo Pratt on Democracy Now! with his attorneys Johnnie Cochran Jr. and Stuart Hanlon Framed Black Panther leader Geronimo Pratt wins appeal wsws.org 1947 births 2011 deaths American expatriates in Tanzania United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War COINTELPRO targets Members of the Black Panther Party Overturned convictions in the United States People from Morgan City, Louisiana People wrongfully convicted of murder Political prisoners Political prisoners in the United States Recipients of the Silver Star Military personnel from Louisiana University of California, Los Angeles alumni