Charges Dropped Against Former Tennessee Death Row Inmate

Yesterday, Tennessee prosecutors dropped murder charges against a man who has been on death row for 22 years for a murder he had been convicted of committing in 1985. The man, Paul House, had been convicted of murdering a young mother in 1985. In 1986 the United States Supreme Court reversed his conviction and sent the case back to the federal court because they concluded that a jury may have decided differently if they knew the result of the DNA testing. The semen found on the victims clothing did not match House. A federal judge ordered that House either be given a new trial or be set free. Last July, an anonymous donor posted a $100,000 bond and House has been free on bond since then. The 47 year old ex-death row inmate, is suffering from multiple sclerosis and confined to a wheelchair.

Tennessee prosecutors believe that House was involved in the murder. However, they think that others may have been involved as well. While none of the DNA found on the victim's clothing matched House's, the victim's blood was found on House's clothing. House's attorneys claim that the investigator's sloppy tactics caused the victim's blood to be found on House's clothing. Prosecutors believe that the problems with the evidence, along with the substantial sentence already served by House justified dismissing the charges. Now prosecutors and police say they will focus on finding the others that they believe were involved in the murder.

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