Juan Rivera timeline: 3 times convicted, 3 times released since 1992
<h3 class="leadin">1992
Aug. 17: Holly Staker, 11, is found dead in Waukegan apartment where she was baby-sitting. She had been stabbed 27 times, strangled and raped.
Oct. 26: Already in prison for violating probation on a burglary conviction, 19-year-old Juan Rivera is identified in a tip as someone who might know about Holly's murder. He's brought in for questioning.
Oct. 30: After four days of interrogation by investigators, Rivera confesses. He signs two different documents confessing to the crime, each offering different versions of the events leading to Holly's death.
<h3 class="leadin">1993
Nov. 1: Rivera's first trial begins.
Nov. 19: Jury convicts Rivera of Holly's murder but does not vote for death penalty.
Dec. 21: Rivera is sentenced to life in prison.
<h3 class="leadin">1996
Nov. 9: An appeals court overturns Rivera's conviction and orders a new trial.
<h3 class="leadin">1998
Sept. 16: Rivera's second trial begins.
Oct. 2: Jury deliberates for four days before convicting Rivera again.
Dec. 10: Rivera is sentenced to life in prison again.
<h3 class="leadin">2001
Dec. 12: An appeals court affirms Rivera's conviction.
<h3 class="leadin">2005
May 24: DNA tests eliminate Rivera as the rapist.
<h3 class="leadin">2006
Aug. 29: Lake County Judge Christopher Starck vacates Rivera's conviction based on DNA evidence and orders a third trial.
<h3 class="leadin">2009
April 13: Rivera's third trial begins.
May 8: Jury finds Rivera guilty again.
June 25: Starck sentences Rivera to life in prison for a third time.
<h3 class="leadin">2011
Dec. 9: An appeals court rules Rivera's conviction was "unjustified and cannot stand."
<h3 class="leadin">2012
Jan. 6: Rivera is released from prison.
Oct. 29: Rivera files federal suit against Lake County over wrongful conviction.
<h3 class="leadin">2015
March 20: Rivera wins record $20 million settlement from Lake County.