Montana governor frees man in 1979 murder he long denied

FILE - This May 15, 2013, file photo shows Barry Beach wearing a T-shirt that says "I didn't do it" at a Billings, Mont., diner. Montana Gov. Steve Bullock is expected to decide Friday, Nov. 20, 2015 if Beach, imprisoned for a 1979 murder that he's long denied, should be released after three decades behind bars. Beach, 53, is serving a 100-year sentence at Montana State Prison in the beating death of high school classmate Kimberly Nees in the small town of Poplar, in northeast Montana.(AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File) FILE - This May 15, 2013, file photo shows Barry Beach wearing a T-shirt that says "I didn't do it" at a Billings, Mont., diner. Montana Gov. Steve Bullock is expected to decide Friday, Nov. 20, 2015 if Beach, imprisoned for a 1979 murder that he's long denied, should be released after three decades behind bars. Beach, 53, is serving a 100-year sentence at Montana State Prison in the beating death of high school classmate Kimberly Nees in the small town of Poplar, in northeast Montana.(AP Photo/Matthew Brown, File)

By Associated Press November 20, 2015 3 min read

DEER LODGE, Mont. (AP) – Montana’s Democratic governor on Friday ordered the release of Barry Beach, whose cause drew widespread support as he maintained his innocence throughout three decades in prison for the killing of a high school classmate.

Beach, 53, has been serving a 100-year sentence in Montana State Prison for deliberate homicide in the 1979 beating death of Kimberly Nees, 17, on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation, in the northeast corner of the state. His release was effective at noon.

Bullock noted in his order that Beach was a 17-year-old juvenile at the time and exhibited good behavior in prison.

“Obviously we’re thrilled. It’s going to get Barry home in time to be with his mom for Thanksgiving,” said Beach’s longtime attorney, Peter Camiel.

The murder of honor student Nees gripped the small town of Poplar after her body was found alongside the river at a popular place for teenagers to party. The killing remained unsolved for several years, with small-town gossip building until out-of-state police got Beach’s confession after picking him up on an unrelated crime.