Maurice Hastings: Man Who Spent 38 Years In Jail For Murder Was Released After Test Shows DNA Found On Victim’s Body Was Not His | News from the UK



A man who spent more than 38 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit was released after DNA tests pointed to another suspect, now dead.

Maurice Hastings, now 69, was convicted of the 1983 murder of Roberta Wydermyer, killed by a single gunshot to the head. Her body was found in the trunk of her vehicle.

Mr. Hastings was originally tried for murder in special circumstances with the district attorney’s office calling for the death penalty, but the jury at the time was unable to deliver a verdict.

He was retried and convicted of murder, robbery and sexual assault, with a jury that sentenced him to life in prison in 1988 without the possibility of parole.

He was also convicted of two attempted murders, of Mrs. Wydermyer’s husband and her friend, according to NBC4, despite no physical evidence ever linking Mr. Hastings to the original crime in Inglewood, Los Angeles.

Prior to his release from a California prison, Mr. Hastings maintained his innocence for nearly four decades.

“What happened to Mr. Hastings is a terrible injustice,” District Attorney George Gascón said in a statement.

“The judicial system is not perfect and when we learn of new evidence that makes us lose faith in a belief, it is our obligation to act quickly.”

Mr. Hastings looked thrilled when his sentence was overturned by the court.

The semen found in the victim’s mouth was not his

At the time of the victim’s autopsy, the coroner conducted an examination for sexual assault and semen was found in the victim’s mouth.

Mr. Hastings requested the DNA test in 2000, but the district attorney’s office denied the request.

Last year he then filed an innocence complaint with the District Attorney’s Sentence Integrity Unit, and last June the DNA test found the sperm was not his.

Instead, he is paired with a convicted person for the armed kidnapping of a victim, placed in the trunk of a vehicle, and for the kidnapping, rape and forced sexual act of a young woman.

That suspect, whose name has not been released, was sentenced to 56 years in prison for those crimes and is now dead.

The district attorney’s office said it was working with police to further investigate the deceased person’s involvement in the case.

“I have prayed for many years for this day to come,” Hastings said after his sentence was overturned.

malek

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

GreenLeaf Tw2sl