Judge Orders Insurance Carrier to Pay Ryan Ferguson

A judge has ordered a former insurance carrier for the city of Columbia to pay $5.3 million to a man who served 10 years in prison before his conviction for killing a sports editor in Columbia was thrown out.

The Columbia Daily Tribune reports that Judge Glen Dietrich ordered St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance pay Ryan Ferguson $1 million per year for the five years he spent in prison while the policy was in effect. The judge also awarded Ferguson $354,000 in attorney's fees. Ferguson had sued the insurer to collect part of an $11 million payout awarded last year.

Ferguson's attorney, Michael Barry, says he's happy for his client.

Ferguson was released from prison in 2013 in the 2001 killing of Columbia Daily Tribune Sports Editor and former Quincy resident Kent Heitholt.