2011-12-14T13:35:04
Staff Reports
BBC-US–Writer-Wife’s DeathP
BNovelist Michael Peterson gets new trialP
BEds: APNewsNow. Will be updated.P
BBy Michael BieseckerP
BAssociated PressP
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — A judge is giving North Carolina novelist Michael Peterson a new trial in the 2001 death of his wife.
Judge Orlando Hudson ruled Wednesday that former State Bureau of Investigation agent Duane Deaver misled the court about the bloodstain evidence at the 2003 trial. Peterson was convicted of murder in the death of Kathleen Peterson, who was found at the bottom of a bloody staircase.
The law enforcement agency fired Deaver in January after an independent audit found he misreported, mishandled or exaggerated forensic evidence in 34 criminal cases.
Over the last week, defense lawyer David Rudolf presented witnesses to cast doubt on Deaver’s credibility, including three of the agent’s former colleagues. In his closing argument Wednesday, Rudolf said Deaver’s lies violated Peterson’s right to a fair trial.
AP
12/14/11 13:35
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