'This is the moment of my life, right here. I'm at a loss for words,' he said

Walked arm-in-arm with wife and hugged grandchildren he had never met

A Colorado man who was wrongly convicted of rape after a woman said his face had come to her in a dream beamed widely yesterday as he was finally freed from prison after a staggering 28 years.

Clarence Moses-EL locked arms with his wife, Stephanie Burke, as he walked out of Denver County jail to applause from his tearful children and grandchildren - some of whom he had never met.

The 60 year old, who was dressed in a suit and tie, had just posted a $50,000 bond that a judge required for his freedom after she overturned his 1988 conviction on rape and assault charges.

A free man: Clarence Moses-EL locks arms with his wife, Stephanie Burke, as he walks out of Denver County Jail yesterday to applause from his tearful children and grandchildren after a staggering 28 years behind bars

Overjoyed: The 60 year old, dressed in a black suit, a blue shirt and a tie, is flanked by one of his attorneys, Eric Klein, far left, his wife, second from left, and stepdaughter Michelle after his release from prison

Jailed: Moses-EL (pictured inside Kit Carson Correctional Center in Burlington) has maintained his innocence

In her ruling - which came after another man confessed to having sex with the woman on the night in question - the judge found that Moses-EL would likely be acquitted if his case went to trial again.

After leaving the jail yesterday, Moses-EL walked over and hugged three of his 12 grandchildren for the first time. Then, taking a deep breath of the crisp late afternoon air, he addressed reporters.

'This is the moment of my life, right here. I'm at a loss for words,' Moses-EL said.

'I just want to get home to my family.'

He added that he has 'waited a long time for this' - and that he eagerly anticipates arriving home to a special pizza 'with chopped shrimp and steak, smothered in cheese', and a comfortable chair.

Moses-EL - who has always maintained his innocence - was sentenced to 48 years in prison for raping and assaulting the woman after she returned home from a night of drinking.

When police initially asked the victim who assaulted her, she named the other man.

In good spirits: Moses-El smiles with his wife and other family members. He had just posted a $50,000 bond that a judge required for his freedom after she overturned his 1988 conviction on rape and assault charges

An emotional reunion: In her ruling - which came after another man confessed to having sex with the woman on the night in question - the judge found that Moses-EL would likely be acquitted if his case went to trial again

Addressing journalists: After leaving the jail yesterday, Moses-EL walked over and hugged three of his 12 grandchildren for the first time. Then, taking a deep breath of the crisp afternoon air, he addressed reporters

Admission: Moses-EL's long-awaited break came in 2013 when L.C. Jackson (pictured) - the man who the victim originally identified as her rapist - wrote to him, admitting he had sex with the woman that night

But more than a day after the assault, while in hospital, she identified Moses-EL as her attacker.

She told officers his face had come to her in a dream - and he was convicted.

Moses-EL's efforts to appeal his conviction were unsuccessful and the legal and political system repeatedly failed him in his decades-long attempt to win his freedom.

He won a legal bid for DNA testing on the evidence to clear his name, but Denver Police threw it away, saying they didn't see any notice from prosecutors to hold on to it.

In 2008, the governor, a former Denver prosecutor, objected to legislation that would have given him a new trial and that received widespread support from lawmakers.

A lengthy sentence: The woman told officers that Moses-EL's face had come to her in a dream after the attack

Failed by the system: Moses-EL's efforts to appeal his conviction were unsuccessful. The legal and political system repeatedly failed him in his decades-long attempt to win his freedom. Above, Moses-EL yesterday

Happy: Moses-EL joins his grandchildren and lawyers on the steps of the Denver County jail after his release

Moses-EL's long-awaited break came in 2013 when L.C. Jackson - the man who the victim had originally identified as her rapist - wrote to him, admitting he had sex with the woman that night.

Jackson has not been charged in this case but is imprisoned for two other rapes in 1992.

Speaking to reporters today, Moses-EL said his spirituality was what kept him from losing hope during his 28 years behind bars, adding: 'And my innocence. That's what really kept me going.'

However, still looming was the prospect of a new trial. Prosecutors have not decided whether to try Moses-EL again, saying they are considering the age of the case and the availability of witnesses.

Interview: The grandfather talks to reporters after his release from Denver County jail yesterday afternoon

Locked up: Prosecutors have not decided whether to try Moses-EL again, saying they are considering the age of the case and the availability of witnesses. Above, Moses-EL is seen behind bars in Burlington in 2007

A tentative trial date was set for May, if prosecutors decide to pursue new charges.

Moses-EL's attorney, Eric Klein, said it would be foolish for prosecutors not to dismiss the case against an innocent man.

But, at least in his first moments of freedom today, Moses-EL's mind was elsewhere.