US citizen freed after DNA test after serving 38 years of acquittal
A man who served nearly four years for murder has been released in the United States. Because new DNA evidence shows another man committed murder.
Maurice Hastings has served more than 38 years in prison for the 1983 murder of Roberta Wiedermeier and two attempted murders in California.
But new DNA evidence points to another man who died in prison in 2020.
gentlemen. Hastings, 69, was released on October 20 after his conviction was dismissed.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Mr. George Gascon. Hastings described the case as a “horrific injustice”.
The justice system is not perfect, and we have an obligation to act quickly when we learn that new evidence undermines our confidence in our sentencing – he said in a statement.
In 1983, Roberta Wiedermeier was found dead in the trunk of her car. It is saying that There was a gunshot wound to his head. She was sexually assaulted before the murder.
Then Mr. Hastings has been charged with murder and prosecutors seek the death penalty in a petition.
The jury could not agree on this in the first stage of the trial. But a jury found him guilty in a second trial, and he was sentenced to life in prison in 1988.
The presence of semen was detected in samples taken from the victim’s mouth during the autopsy. Mr. from the moment of arrest. Hastings maintained his innocence. But in 2000, the district attorney denied a request for DNA testing of the sample.
Finally, in 2021, he persuaded the state and in June a DNA test showed that the semen collected in the sample was not his.
The DNA profiles were then matched with people convicted of armed kidnapping. There, he also stuffed his female victim into the trunk of his car.
After the October 20 hearing on his dismissal, Mr. Hastings told reporters he had no grudge against his 38 years of innocent detention. He wants to enjoy the rest of his life.
I’ve been praying for years that this day will come – the Associated Press said. Hastings was quoted as saying: I don’t blame anyone, I’m not a bitter person, but I just want to enjoy life now.