A Peekskill man wrongly convicted of rape and murder became a free man Wednesday after spending 16 years in prison.

Jeffery Deskovic was only 17 when he was convicted in the rape and murder of 15-year-old Angela Correa. When the Westchester District Attorney?s office re-opened his case, DNA evidence showed another man who is currently in prison for murder was responsible for the crime not Deskovic.

Deskovic says his wrongful conviction illustrates the problems with the criminal justice system. He says he was taken to another county and interrogated by police for more than seven hours in 1989. Deskovic says his confession was coerced and thought at the time he would be cleared. A blood sample from Deskovic taken before his trial showed he was not the killer, yet he was convicted.