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Lawrence Callanan, who was released from prison last year by an order of the Missouri Supreme Court, was convicted in 1996 of the murder of John M. Schuh.

St. Louis County officials began the process of issuing a check to Callanan on Friday, an aide to County Executive Sam Page said.

Attorney Javad Khazaeli of the law firm worked with the St. Louis University law clinic on behalf of Callanan.

“Larry Callanan is thankful that St. Louis Prosecutor Wesley Bell, County Counselor Beth Orwick and the Page administration have taken steps to right his wrongful conviction for nearly a quarter of a century,� Khazaeli said. “He could not have made it this far without the relentless work of many lawyers, including Cheryl Pilate, Lindsay Runnels and Sean O’Brien.�

At the time of Callanan’s conviction, then-St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch said the evidence against Callanan was “clear, convincing and overwhelming as to his guilt.� But Bell, who defeated McCulloch in the 2018 Democratic primary, wrote a letter to the court last year supporting Callanan.

“We are deeply concerned by the prosecutorial misconduct that occurred during Mr. Callanan’s 1996 trial,� Bell wrote. “Mr. Callanan’s conviction rested entirely on circumstantial evidence. ... The prosecution was based upon a theory of ‘exclusive opportunity’ that hinged on the testimony of a lone and uncorroborated witness.�

That witness, Bell said, actually told the prosecutor who handled the case, Dan Diemer, that she saw two cars leaving the scene of the crime. Diemer instructed her not to tell anybody about the second car, and he never disclosed the exculpatory evidence to the defense.

“Compounding this error, having instructed her to lie, the prosecutor then repeatedly vouched for her credibility,� Bell wrote. “Were it not for the prosecutor’s egregious misconduct in this case, Mr. Callanan would not have been convicted. Such misconduct is not tolerated by this office.�

In setting Callanan free last June, Chief Justice George W. Draper III said Callanan “has met the burden of proof necessary to establish� his “claims that the state concealed favorable, material evidence in violation of Brady v. Maryland.�

The landmark Brady case, decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1963, requires prosecutors to turn over all evidence that might exonerate a defendant to his or her attorneys.

When he was convicted of the murder, Callanan was the 20-year-old son of two generations of union officials, who were suspected of having ties to organized crime.

Callanan blamed prosecutors for targeting him because of “events that took place before I was born.�

A special master appointed by the Missouri Supreme Court, Judge Gael D. Wood, ruled last year that Callanan’s conviction should be vacated “due to the egregious Brady violation by the prosecutor.�

In his 116-page report, Wood didn’t determine that Callanan met the legal standard for proving his “actual innocence� but said the verdict was “not worthy of confidence.�

“Our firm is honored to have worked with the St. Louis University law clinic in getting the long-delayed compensation, but nothing can give Larry the years he lost,� Khazaeli said.

Tony Messenger of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.