Michael Morton’s story sounds like a tall tale of Texan proportions, but sometimes truth is stranger than fiction. In 1987, he was wrongfully convicted of the murder of his wife when the couple’s son was three years old. Morton spent 24 years in prison before his conviction was overturned when DNA evidence connected the real killer to the crime. Morton was released from prison in 2013 and has since rebuilt his relationship with his son and has dedicated his life to helping people falsely accused of crimes get justice. The worst part is that the evidence that Morton was not guilty was there all along; he could have been exonerated even before DNA testing technology became available. The prosecution had withheld evidence from Morton and his defense lawyer, namely that his son had told relatives that his father was not home at the time of the crime and had described the killer’s appearance to his grandmother. In 2014, Texas Governor Rick Perry signed the Michael Morton Act into law. This law requires more open discovery in criminal cases. To find out more about how open discovery can help you cast doubt on your criminal charges, contact a Texas criminal defense lawyer.
Pretrial Discovery and Criminal Cases
Pretrial discovery happens in both civil and criminal cases. In civil cases, the parties may request information from each other in order to build their respective arguments. In criminal cases, the prosecution must release to the defense attorneys any exculpatory evidence, that is, evidence that points to the defendant’s innocence or casts doubt on his or her guilt. The trouble is that, until recently, it was up to the prosecution to decide which evidence was exculpatory.
Pursuant to the Michael Morton Act, defense lawyers have the right to examine all of the information prosecutors have collected in the course of the investigation. It expands the right to information for defendants in criminal cases beyond the mandatory disclosures indicated in the Brady Supreme Court decision.
Prosecutorial Misconduct Can Be Enough to Establish Reasonable Doubt
If your defense lawyer diligently examines all the available evidence, he or she may not find evidence that unambiguously proves your innocence, but a jury does not have to be completely certain of your innocence to acquit you; they must only have reasonable doubt about your guilt.
The prosecution’s files may show that police, crime labs, or prosecuting attorneys acted carelessly or even maliciously. Open discovery may inform your defense strategy in a way that enables you to cast doubt on the testimony of one or more of the prosecution’s witnesses. Your case could even be so strong that you can persuade the judge to drop the charges before the case gets to trial.
Contact the Law Office of Patrick J. McLain, PLLC About Criminal Defense Cases
A Dallas criminal defense lawyer can help you make the most of the open discovery process so that you can build strong defenses and establish reasonable doubt about your guilt. Contact the Law Office of Patrick J. McLain, PLLC, in Dallas, Texas, to discuss your case.