A Wisconsin judge has ordered the release of Brendan Dassey, the boy who was said to be an accomplice in the Steven Avery murder case. The controversial court case was the subject of the Netflix documentary, "Making A Murderer".
In 2007, a jury found him guilty of being a party to first-degree intentional homicide, mutilation of a corpse and second-degree sexual assault. He was sentenced to mandatory life in prison with possibility of parole. Dassey was 16 years old when he was arrested. His uncle, Steven Avery, is the main suspect for killing Teresa Halbach, a photographer for a car magazine.
In August this year, a year after Netflix released "Making A Murderer", Judge William Duffin throws out Dassey's conviction, stating that investigators coerced the simple-minded teen to provide a false confession using "deceptive tactics". In a video of Dassey's interrogation with police, he was promised that he will not get into any trouble if he "told the truth". Dassey has been incarcerated since his conviction in 2007.
In latest developments, the same judge who reversed the conviction is now ordering Dassey's release within 90 days unless the prosecution files an appeal to start a retrial. The prosecution responded quickly by attempting to block the release. Wisconsin's Attorney General, Brad Schimel said that his office would file an emergency motion asking the courts to stop the release order.
Meanwhile, Dassey's legal team is hoping that the release is made before Thanksgiving. "It's not going to happen today, but we are very hopeful we will have Brendan home by Thanksgiving if not sooner," defense lawyer Steven Drizin said.
The controversial case against Brendan Dassey and his uncle, Steven Avery, caught massive attention after Netflix aired "Making A Murderer" in December 2015. Since its broadcast, a petition to pardon Avery and Dassey was made and submitted to the White House. It has achieved more than 128,000 signatures. The White House responded that the President had no jurisdiction over the case as it was filed in state court. However, the latest release order brings positive development to a murder case spanning ten years.
