A Waterloo man who was serving a life sentence in prison for killing a man nearly 40 years ago was released from prison on Monday. Rasberry Williams went to prison in 1975 for the July 1974 death of Lester Givran over a $40 gambling debt outside a Waterloo pool hall.
In April 2013, Governor Terry Branstad commuted Williams’ sentence to life in prison with the possibility of parole. A public hearing was held last summer in Waterloo with members of the state parole board, as one of the remaining hurdles for Williams’ sentence to be commuted further.
Williams will be under the supervision of the Iowa Department of Correctional Services, Fifth Judicial District.
(Reporting by Scott Fenzloff, KCNZ, Cedar Falls)