A New York federal district court, Judge Ronald Ellis, on Friday approved a $41 million settlement in the lawsuit filed by the Central Park Five.

Twenty five years ago, a woman was raped and left for dead while jogging in New York's Central Park. The crime outraged many in the city, and the story made news headlines around the world. Five black and Latino teenagers were convicted based on their confessions. In 2002, the actual rapist confessed to the crime, and the five men were exonerated. They sued the city, but Mayor Michael Bloomberg refused to settle, arguing that the confessions withstood scrutiny. Mayor Bill de Blasio said during his campaign he would settle the lawsuit.

"This settlement is an act of justice for those five men that is long overdue," said de Blasio in a statement released Friday. "The City had a moral obligation to right this injustice -- which is why, from Day One, I vowed to settle this case. ... With today's approval by a federal judge, we can finally put this case behind us, and these five men and their families can begin to heal these wounds and move forward."

The settlement will be divided among the men, about a million dollars for each year they spent in prison. Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam and Raymond Santana, who spent seven years in prison, will each receive $7.13 million, and Kharey Wise will receive $12.25 million for the thirteen years he was imprisoned.

In a news conference in February to remind de Blasio about his campaign promise, on the steps of New York's City Hall, the Central Park Five, along with their supporters, expressed the anguish and hardship they went through and the pain their families experienced for all those years.

"Everywhere is another Central Park Five, so we must have closure and stop this before it happens again," said Kevin Richardson told reporters.

Raymond Santana, Jr, said, "It's been 25 years since we went through this great injustice, the labels, the false imprisonment, the destruction of our family structures, the turning of the backs, the ridicule. We were given a social death, we weren't supposed to survive but through the grace of God we are here today."

The City, however does not admit culpability.

"This agreement should not be construed as an acknowledgment that the convictions of these five plaintiffs were the result of law enforcement misconduct. On the contrary, our review of the record suggests that both the investigating detectives and the Assistant District Attorneys involved in the case acted reasonably, given the circumstances with which they were confronted on April 19, 1989 and thereafter. In the end, however, that is an issue that would ultimately be determined by a jury at trial, absent a settlement of this litigation. We have determined that a resolution of this matter is in the best interests of the City," Zach Carter, New York City Corporation Counsel said in a statement.