Brendan Dassey, whose case was documented in the Netflix series Making a Murderer, has had his conviction overturned by a federal judge in Milwaukee.
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The Wisconsin Department of Justice says it is now reviewing Judge Duffin’s ruling and will not comment at this time.
A spokeswoman for the state Department of Justice, which was handling the case, did not immediately return a message seeking comment, according to the Associated Press.
In its report on the ruling, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel noted that Duffin “was highly critical of investigators, Dassey’s pretrial attorney and the state courts on how they handled the case, concluding that Dassey’s constitutional rights were violated”.
The case was thrown into the national spotlight late past year by the popular 10-part Netflix documentary series. Authorities involved in the case have called the 10-hour series biased, while the filmmakers have stood by their work.
Brendan Dassey, whose confession to involvement in the murder of Teresa Halbach was depicted in the wildly popular Netflix documentary series “Making a Murderer”, may be released from prison by Thanksgiving.
“The court acknowledges significant doubts as to the reliability of Dassey’s confession”, the ruling said. After separate trials in 2007, both Avery and Dassey were sentenced to life in prison.
At his trial, Dassey’s attorneys argued that their client’s confession was false, and the teen repeatedly said he fabricated his statements under pressure from law enforcement.
Considering the suspect’s age,”intellectual deficits, and the absence of a supportive adult”, the judge on Friday deemed Dassey’s confession involuntary and unconstitutional.
Unlike Avery, whose conviction was based largely on DNA evidence, no physical evidence linked Dassey to the slaying of Ms. Halbach. He was also described as extremely introverted and poor at picking up nonverbal communications such as body language and tone.
March 18, 2007: After deliberating for almost 22 hours over three days, jurors convict Avery, now 44, of first-degree intentional homicide and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Previously, Dassey was wrongfully convicted for the rape of jogger Penny Beerntsen in Wisconsin, and was released after 18 years in prison. After being freed, he had a $36 million lawsuit pending against public officials when Halbach disappeared on Halloween 2005.
Dassey, who is now 26 years old, is scheduled to be released in 90 days, provided no appeals are made and that prosecutors do not move for a retrial.
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“The court does not reach this conclusion lightly”, Duffin wrote. Court records show he also had an IQ of 74 and was taking special education classes in high school.
