‘Making A Murderer’: Steven Avery May Have Another Shot At Acquittal

“Making A Murderer” inspiration Steven Avery is starting to get wind of a new hope after experts claim that he may get a new trial. Avery, the man whose case gained national attention because of Netflix’s true crime series, was accused for the death of 25-year-old photographer Teresa Halbach in 2005. The case seems to be reviving, almost 14 years later, after getting legendary defense lawyer Kathleen Zellner.

Although the current situation seems bleak for the convicted Avery, experts believe that it’s too soon to say that there’s no hope for the case. After Avery contended that the conviction is flawed due to improper handling of the supposed evidence in the form of human remains found near Avery’s residence, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals remanded the issue to the circuit court. Now it comes to Avery’s side to overcome the presumption of guilt, which experts say is the more difficult part.

“On the one hand, after conviction the presumption of guilt, not innocence, takes hold,” said Daniel S. Medwed, a professor of law and criminal justice at the Northeastern University in Boston. “The burden then lies with the defense to overcome that presumption and, in general, present evidence casting doubt on the integrity of the verdict,” he explained.

“On the other hand, at first blush, this claims seems like fairly compelling evidence: not of innocence necessarily, but of a lack of fair play by the prosecutors at trial, if indeed they mischaracterized the forensic evidence and improperly suggested that everything occurred on Avery’s property,” he continued. The professor went on to say that with the new argument on the table and with Zellner, one of the best post-conviction lawyers around, chances seem to look good for Avery.

Fans who have been following the case point out that the former Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice — who claims that Avery does not have any fight left — is focusing on the wrong points, failing to see that testing the remains is for the validity of the evidence rather than an issue of Avery’s constitutional right. Other fans even point out that Zellner will be the one to undermine the case as the online world seems to point out that the esteemed lawyer isn’t as good as everyone seems to put out.

But one seems to put his faith in Zellner, calling her a “nibbler” — whiling away at the edges unassumingly until one realized that he has already lost what he’s holding on to. Based on how things are going, Zellner may have caused some big steps to restart Avery’s case. Although Avery is far from free, the small relief is that he may have another shot to get himself out of a false conviction.