In 2000, Cornealious “Mike” Anderson III was convicted of robbing a Burger King in St. Charles, Missouri. The crime wasn’t violent — he and an accomplice stole about $2,000 at gunpoint — but the sentence was harsh: 13 years in prison.
And then… nothing happened.
Due to a clerical error by the Missouri Department of Corrections, no one ever told Mike when or where to report to prison. State officials believed he was already serving his sentence.
Anderson didn’t run. He didn’t change his name or move away. He stayed home — quietly rebuilding his life.
Over the next 13 years, he did everything society asks of a rehabilitated man:
He married, started a construction business, raised children, coached youth football, and volunteered at his local church. He paid taxes, held a driver’s license, and even registered his business under his real name.
For over a decade, he lived as an upstanding citizen — while, on paper, he was a fugitive.
Then, in 2013, the mistake came to light. U.S. Marshals showed up at his home and arrested him in front of his family.
The irony was staggering: had the system worked correctly, he would have just finished his sentence that same year.
Public outrage erupted. Thousands signed petitions calling for his release, arguing that keeping him behind bars now would serve no purpose.
Even the judge agreed.
After nine months in prison, the court ruled in 2014 that Anderson had “demonstrated rehabilitation without incarceration.” The judge declared:
“You are a good man. You’ve been given a miracle, and you’ve made the most of it.”
And with that, Mike Anderson walked out a free man — legally this time.
His story became a national symbol of redemption and a lesson in how the justice system can both fail and forgive.
He once said in an interview:
“I’m proof that people can change. I didn’t need 13 years behind bars — I needed a second chance.”