ATLANTA -- It’s a new beginning for a man wrongly convicted of rape. He’s now free thanks to DNA evidence. 47-year-old Ronnie Taylor spent 14 years in a Texas prison for a rape he said he never committed. He’ll likely get more than a half a million dollars from the state once he’s pardoned. But Taylor said it doesn’t make up for the life he lost.

Taylor said he has diabetes and high blood pressure now. No amount of money will bring back his health. His wrongful imprisonment shows a botched investigation by the Houston Crime Lab. It turns out there were sheets, underwear and other evidence from the crime scene that was never tested. He said he always knew he’d get out of prison, the only question was when.

“I learned to live with it and I lived with it,” said Taylor. He also said he had no bitterness. Taylor was convicted for a rape in Houston, TX in 1993. It was a crime he knew he’d be proven innocent of.

“There’s just some things you know and I knew. I didn’t know it was going to take 14 years but I knew. I just knew,” said Taylor.

DNA testing proved him right.

In October he made one final court appearance and then he was a free man with his family waiting. Back in Atlanta, longtime girlfriend Jeannette Brown was also waiting.

“When you’re in a place like that it’s important that somebody be in your corner and keep in touch with you and just keep you optimistic,” said Brown.

Showing his serious side, Taylor said he wants to help other men wrongly accused in a system he believes is quick to convict.

“I would bet my freedom against prison time that I could put my hand on three more people in my situation,” said Taylor.

So, Taylor and Brown plan to get married as soon as they can. He doesn’t have money to buy a ring and he still has to get a Georgia ID before he can even get a job.

The Georgia Innocence Project is working hard to help make everything happen for the couple. If you’d like to help, you can call the office at 404-872-8236.