A U.S. judge has overturned the murder conviction of Brendan Dassey, whose story was featured in the popular Netflix documentary series Making a Murderer, along with his uncle.
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Judge William Duffin ordered that Dassey is to be released within 90 days, unless the state of Wisconsin plans to proceed with a retrial.
The judge also faulted Dassey’s interrogation by investigators, who assured the teenager “he would not be punished if he admitted participating in the offenses” and that “he had nothing to worry about”. “These repeated false promises, when considered in conjunction with all relevant factors, most especially Dassey’s age, intellectual deficits, and the absence of a supportive adult, rendered Dassey’s confession involuntary”, Duffin wrote.
ABC News reached out to the filmmakers, Dassey’s attorney, and former prosecutor Ken Kratz, who handled Avery and Dassey’s murder trials, for comment, but hasn’t heard back yet. Dassey was 16 when Halbach was killed.
The release of the series led to widespread public support for Dassey and Avery. There had been no evidence tying Brendan to anything in the case except for what authorities twisted him into saying, and that was so well documented in Making a Murderer.
Dassey’s attorney, Steve Drizin, confirmed the court ruling to NBC. Documentary film makers Moira Demos and Laura Ricciardi brought the shocking story of Steven Avery and his convictions to Netflix, introducing Steven Avery to audience members everywhere.
Nirider says Dassey is in shock and wants badly to come home. Avery is pursuing his own appeal.
Earl Avery was visiting with his brother Friday at the Waupun prison, where Action 2 News caught up with him. Zellner said in a statement that she’s confident that Avery’s conviction will eventually be overturned “when an unbiased court” reviews new evidence. Dassey then was interviewed and interrogated by police – clips from the videos of which were shown on Making a Murderer.
Some viewers said that after watching the documentary they believed that the sheriff’s office planted evidence to frame Avery for the crime. We are thankful and proud that a federal court fulfilled its fundamental role for Brendan Dassey today.
The case was thrown into the national spotlight late a year ago by the popular 10-part Netflix documentary series.
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Associated Press writers Amy Forliti and Doug Glass contributed from Minneapolis.
