The Utah Supreme Court unanimously ruled Thursday that "serious" constitutional violations during the jury trial and resentencing for death row inmate Douglas Stewart Carter merit a new trial (article available here).
Carter, 69, was convicted in 1985 and has spent almost 40 years on death row. Now, he will get another trial.
"It is rare to see a case involving multiple instances of intentional misconduct by two different police officers ... and a prosecutor. But that is what the post-conviction court found here," the opinion says, referring to Provo Police Lt. George Pierpont, officer Richard Mack and prosecutor Wayne Watson.
The state Supreme Court's opinion explained that no physical evidence tied Carter to the crime scene, but he signed a confession.
During his trial, prosecutors relied on testimony from Epifanio and Lucia Tovar, who said they saw Carter just before and after the murder to corroborate Carter's confession. Years after his sentencing, the couple reported they were receiving money from police and were pressured to lie about the financial support and share a fabricated statement. They stated police paid for their rent and threatened to deport their son if they did not testify against Carter.
None of this was disclosed to Carter's attorney, and the false testimony was not corrected by the prosecutor during trial.