Chuck Lindell posts, "Appeals court declares Morton innocent," at the Austin American-Statesman.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals agreed today to toss out Michael Morton’s 1987 conviction and life sentence for the murder of his wife, Christine, in Williamson County.
‘I just called Michael and told him the news. He was thrilled,” said Nina Morrison, a lawyer with the Innocence Project of New York. “This is the first time in almost 25 years he has not had a wrongful conviction on his record and hanging over his head, and obviously it’s a great day for him.”
Noting that recent DNA tests indicate that another man, unidentified in court documents, was the killer, the state’s highest criminal court unanimously declared: “We determine that (Morton) is entitled to relief on his actual innocence claim.”
Morton’s request to vacate his conviction was sent to the court on Oct. 3, a day before he was released from prison in an agreement between defense lawyers and Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley.
That agreement also gave Morton’s lawyers a chance to conduct a limited investigation into allegations that prosecutors and investigators improperly withheld that pointed to Morton’s innocence — but only until the Court of Criminal Appeals ruled on Morton’s innocence claim.
Morrison said defense lawyers believe they have 30 days to complete their investigation into the misconduct claims because appellate court rulings do not become final until a mandate issues 30 days after a ruling is announced.
The Court's ruling in Ex Parte Morton is available in Adobe .pdf format.
Earlier coverage of Michael Morton's case begins at the link.
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