When Mark Bravo set out with his wife, Rosanne, on Friday for a weekend in Las Vegas, he carried with him a love note she is not likely to forget.
This morning, the 45-year-old Diamond Bar resident will give his wife a Valentine's card in which is tucked a copy of a $7-million check he received Friday.
The money is compensation for the three years Bravo was imprisoned by the state of California for a rape he did not commit.
"Rosanne never lost faith in her husband for the whole time," said his attorney, Hermez Moreno. "That's a lot of money, but she's not even going to look at the numbers. She doesn't really care about the money. She's concerned about him."
Bravo, a registered nurse who worked at Metropolitan State Hospital, was convicted in 1990 of raping a female patient.
In 1993, the Innocence Project took an interest in Bravo's case and initiated DNA testing on the alleged victim's panties, a sheet and a blanket, Moreno said. The victim had recanted her testimony several times after Bravo was convicted.
The DNA tests "proved, not only that the materials tested did not match [Bravo], but did not even match the alleged victim," Moreno said.
The money was included in a Senate appropriations bill signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger several weeks ago. The check Bravo got Friday totaled $7,075,367.82.
This morning, the 45-year-old Diamond Bar resident will give his wife a Valentine's card in which is tucked a copy of a $7-million check he received Friday.
The money is compensation for the three years Bravo was imprisoned by the state of California for a rape he did not commit.
"Rosanne never lost faith in her husband for the whole time," said his attorney, Hermez Moreno. "That's a lot of money, but she's not even going to look at the numbers. She doesn't really care about the money. She's concerned about him."
Bravo, a registered nurse who worked at Metropolitan State Hospital, was convicted in 1990 of raping a female patient.
In 1993, the Innocence Project took an interest in Bravo's case and initiated DNA testing on the alleged victim's panties, a sheet and a blanket, Moreno said. The victim had recanted her testimony several times after Bravo was convicted.
The DNA tests "proved, not only that the materials tested did not match [Bravo], but did not even match the alleged victim," Moreno said.
The money was included in a Senate appropriations bill signed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger several weeks ago. The check Bravo got Friday totaled $7,075,367.82.
