Judge tosses dad's 1990 arson-murder conviction

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press

Judge tosses dad's 1990 arson-murder conviction
MICHAEL RUBINKAM, Associated Press | August 8, 2014 | Updated: August 8, 2014 5:47pm

A federal judge in Pennsylvania has thrown out the conviction and life sentence of a Korean man accused of killing his daughter in what authorities alleged was an arson fire 25 years ago.

U.S. District Judge William Nealon vacated Han Tak Lee's state conviction and sentence on Friday, agreeing with a magistrate's conclusion that the science underpinning the case has been discredited.

Nealon ordered that Lee either be tried again within 120 days or be released from prison.

An appeals court had granted Lee's request for an independent examination of evidence from the July 1989 fire that killed 20-year-old Ji Yun Lee at a religious retreat in the Pocono Mountains.

Lee's attorney says he will try to get bail for Lee next week.

Monroe County District Attorney E. David Christine Jr. says he will "very likely" appeal.


Read more: http://www.chron.com/news/us/article/Judge-tosses-dad-s-1990-arson-murder-conviction-5677667.php

[Thor_MN]

1. Journalism is dead. An awful headline.

Implies that it was his own father.

E. David Chirstine Jr. (if you don't like your first name, change it, dumbass, you are a lawyer) wants to appeal the decision rather than retry the case. If the science was bad, that will come out in a new trial. Sounds like he wants more to save honor for the DA's office than see justice done.

[Mosby]

2. fire "science" is a bad joke.