A judge dismissed murder charges Monday against a man who was recently released from prison based on DNA evidence.

Byron Halsey was freed in May after serving 22 years in prison for the murder and rape of two children. On Monday, a judge dismissed all of the charges after prosecutors cited new DNA testing that links another man to the crime.

Halsey was convicted of killing his girlfriend?s two young children in Plainfield in the early 1980s. New DNA testing, not available when Halsey was convicted, implicates a neighbor, Clifton Hall, in the murders. Hall has been locked up for more than a decade on other sex charges.

?I want to thank the judge for setting me free and the prosecution for acknowledging the truth,? Halsey said after his hearing Monday.

Halsey?s case was taken up by the Innocence Project, which has cleared 205 inmates based on DNA testing. The Innocence Project believes Halsey was pressured into the confession that led to his conviction.

Halsey is currently working as a sales associate in Newark. Attorneys say he?s entitled to sue the state for up to $20,000 per year for each year of his incarceration.

Related Information:DNA frees NJ man convicted of killing 2 children