“Making a Murderer” has spurred a big online movement in support of Avery, and a petition on Change.org to free him has hundreds of thousands of signatures. This petition still needs around 80,000 signatures before it is considered by White House staff. This petition now has 58,000 signatures.
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Demos and Ricciardi have been unable to independently verify the juror’s claims, but their revelation will only add to the fervent discussion about Avery’s trial sparked by the documentary, which was first released on Netflix two weeks ago.
The documentary series was filmed over the past decade and focuses on the trial and conviction of the two men in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.
Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos, the filmmakers behind the Netflix docuseries, told NBC’s “Today” on Tuesday that an unidentified juror from Avery’s 2005 murder trial has come forward to admit they believe the convict, who is now serving life in prison, is innocent.
Avery was previously branded a rapist back in 1985 but cleared 18 years later when DNA evidence proved his innocence.
The petition reads, “Based on the evidence in the Netflix documentary series “Making a Murderer”, the justice system embarrassingly failed both men, completely ruining their entire lives”.
Avery’s nephew Brendan Dassey was also convicted of Halbach’s murder.
Avery was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole.
Though it aims at getting the attention of President Obama, because Avery is a state inmate and not a federal one, a presidential pardon is not possible according to the Department of Justice. Some people – particularly officials in Manitowoc County – are accusing the filmmakers of bias towards the Avery family and leaving out key pieces of evidence, but both Demos and Ricciardi disagree.
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“I hope (prosecutor) Ken Kratz gets slapped in the face by the cold hand of reality in the form of an incurable deadly virus”, one person posted on the website.
