Florida leads the nation in wrongful death sentences with 20. What has become of these survivors?

Illinois has freed at least 12 condemned inmates, the latest on May 17, and has attracted most of the national publicity lately. But it is Florida—with 20 death row survivors—that leads the nation in wrongful death sentences.

Three of the 20 came within 16 hours of the electric chair. Their last meals had been ordered, their $150 burial suits measured, tailored and waiting.

What has become of Florida’s wrongly condemned?

One is dead, murdered on the streets of Medellin, Colombia, a few years after his release.

Two never left state custody. They are serving out sentences for other crimes.

Four got a taste of freedom. They are back behind bars for offenses they committed after they were released.

The remaining 13 are back in society, free from death row but not from its shadows.

Many of those 13 live on the edge, modestly and anonymously, fearful that word of their past will get out, struggling to get back some of what they lost: marriages, self-respect, jobs, health, mental stability.

Outwardly, three or four of the survivors seem perfectly normal, with families, nice homes and good jobs. But every day, they must deal with the memories, the bitterness, the anger and fear.

The nightmares have ended for Sunny Jacobs, released Oct. 9, 1992. She lives with her daughter and the mutt she laughingly calls her "grand-dog-ter" and runs a growing yoga business in Los Angeles. She dabbles in filmmaking with Micki Dickoff and in her spare time writes a memoir of death row and life after.

"We’re all a little reclusive," says Jacobs of death row survivors. "We all struggle a little to find a life and fit in."