(CNN) Imprisoned for more than 45 years for a murder he didn't commit, Richard Phillips spent more time behind bars than any other wrongfully imprisoned person in America.

But after another man admitted to that murder, the Michigan native was exonerated and released from prison last March.

Now Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has announced that Phillips will receive $1.5 million in compensation for his time behind bars.

Phillips is entitled to up to $50,000 for each year he was imprisoned, according to the Michigan Wrongful Imprisonment Compensation Act. The money isn't taxed, and he won't lose any of it to attorney's fees, his lawyer Gabi Silver told CNN.

The $1.5 million payment covers about three decades of his prison sentence because he also served time in jail on an armed robbery conviction.

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