Exoneration doesn't solve everything.

Exoneration doesn't solve everything.

Derris Lewis had to get away from Columbus. And if you know his story, it's easy to understand why. "I needed something new," says Lewis, who moved to Charlotte, North Carolina, after graduating from Ohio State University in August 2014.

Seven years ago, Lewis starred in one of the most remarkable Columbus courtroom dramas in recent memory. In February 2008, Lewis, then an 18-year-old college-bound honors student at East High School, was charged with killing his identical twin brother, Dennis. Lewis spent the next 18 months in the Franklin County jail, unable to explain away the seemingly irrefutable physical evidence (a bloody palm print) that linked him to the crime.

But it turned out Lewis was the victim of a profoundly botched Columbus police investigation. In August 2009, Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O'Brien dropped charges against Lewis after discovering a miscommunication had apparently led Columbus police detectives to conclude wrongly that Lewis' print was in blood (the print was actually located above a blood smear, a follow-up test concluded). Without Lewis even filing a lawsuit, the city of Columbus agreed to pay him $950,000 for the wrongful arrest. "My heart goes out to Derris Lewis and the entire Lewis family for the anguish and trauma they have experienced," then-Columbus Mayor Mike Coleman said in a September 2009 press release.

Today, Lewis, who graduated with a degree in human ecology, works for a nonprofit in Charlotte that helps developmentally disabled people. He's also pursuing a master's degree in human services and plans eventually to get a doctorate. His mother, who suffers from multiple sclerosis, influenced his career choice. He's also been fiscally prudent with the settlement he received from the city of Columbus. He says he's set most of it aside and lives off what he earns in his job.

When he regained his freedom, Lewis avoided dwelling too much on the past. He stayed upbeat and focused on building a new life for himself. "I couldn't be mad at CPD," says Lewis, 26. "That's not me, and it's never been me. It happened-and it certainly affected my life-but you really just have to shake the dust off and not have a pity party."

Still, that doesn't mean Lewis has forgotten about his brother. Far from it. Lewis thinks about him every day. He can't help it. "When I wash my face in the morning, I see him," Lewis says.

He honors his brother by trying to live a life of meaning and service. He also awards a scholarship every year to an East High School student in the marching band (both he and his brother were in the band) to honor Dennis. Birthdays can be tough, as is Jan. 18, the anniversary of Dennis' death. On that day, Lewis posts a message on Facebook every year asking people who might know something about the crime to come forward.

Thus far, Columbus police have made no further arrests in his brother's murder (the case is assigned to CPD's Cold Case Unit). But Lewis has faith. Just as he believed he would ultimately win his case despite the obstacles in front of him, he now believes his brother's killer eventually will be found. "Justice will be served," he says. "Somebody knows something, and eventually it will come out. I just don't know when."