A US man whose murder conviction was the focus of the popular Netflix series Making a Murderer will have his case re-examined by a court in Wisconsin.<\/p>\n
Steven Avery is serving a life sentence for the murder of young freelance photographer Teresa Halbach in 2005.<\/p>\n
He says he is innocent. Avery has won a motion to appeal based on possible human bones found in a gravel pit.<\/p>\n
His lawyer says they were not tested for DNA and were given to the Halbach family, a violation of state law.<\/p>\n
Kathleen Zellner, who filed the motion, said the return of the bones meant that potentially crucial evidence in the case had been kept from further testing.<\/p>\n
Avery and his nephew Brendan Dassey were both sentenced to life in jail – in separate trials – for killing Ms Halbach, whose charred remains were found at Avery’s car salvage yard a week after she went there to photograph a minivan for sale.<\/p>\n
If the bones – found near the Avery property – are found to belong to Ms Halbach, Ms Zellner says it undermines the prosecution’s theory that she was killed on the Avery property.<\/p>\n
“This evidence has the potential to undo the whole case, so it is a big win,”<\/a>she told Newsweek magazine.<\/p>\n “The case is being remanded back to the circuit court to conduct proceedings, which can include a hearing. The circuit court can grant a new trial, or if not, back to appellate court who can reverse the conviction and\/or grant a new trial.”<\/p>\n Evidence related to the bones can now be submitted.<\/p>\n On Twitter, Ms Zellner said:\u00a0“We are going to have an extraordinary number of constitutional violations when we are done.<\/a>\u00a0The [court of appeals] is letting us create an avalanche of evidence in this record. Higher courts rule.”<\/p>\n Making a Murderer cast doubt on the legal process used in the investigation and subsequent court cases.<\/p>\n Avery previously served 18 years for another crime he did not commit.<\/p>\n Source: bbc.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"