[2] He was awarded $1.4 million for the time he spent imprisoned,[3] and the prosecutor who put him in prison was ultimately disbarred for concealing exculpatory evidence and using false testimony in the case.

Instead of physical evidence, the conviction was based upon the testimony of Robert Earl Carter, who later admitted he had committed the crime alone and was executed on May 31, 2000.

[6] As a death row inmate, he entered the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) system on November 7, 1994.

Following Graves' exoneration and release, he testified at a Senate subcommittee hearing about the conditions of his imprisonment at Polunsky, and following his testimony, Mother Jones declared the prison to be the second-worst in the United States.

[2] In June 2011, Graves was awarded $1.4 million for the time he spent on death row[3] under the Tim Cole Compensation Act.