Arizona Mom Acquitted After 22 Years on Death Row for Son's Death
The murder charge against an Arizona mom on death row who had languished in jail for 22 years for the 1989 killing of her son was dismissed by a judge on Monday after the prosecution lost its bid for a retrial.
Debra Jean Milke, who was freed on bond in 2013, was finally exonerated when Judge Rosa Mroz of the Maricopa Country Superior Court informed her of the dismissal of her case.
"I received a letter from the Supreme Court dated March 17, 2015 in which they declined to review the petition for review. And so, based on that, I'm going to enter an order of dismissal with prejudice on Miss Milke's case. It is further ordered exonerating the bond," said Mroz in the court room, according to The Arizona Republic.
Milke was convicted in 1990 for the murder, kidnapping and child abuse of her four-year-old son Christopher. In 1989, Christopher was told that he was going to a mall to see Santa Claus. He was instead taken by two men to a place in the desert where he was shot in the back.
An appeals court overturned her conviction in 2013 after the detective on her case, Armando Saldate, who claimed she had confessed the killing to him, was later found unable to produce a record of her confession. Moreover, he "had no witnesses, destroyed his notes, and had a record of misconduct," according to Fox10 Phoenix.
The misconduct involved other cases, which was not disclosed to Milke's attorneys.
Prosecutors filed an appeal with the Arizona Supreme Court for a retrial but it was denied.
Milke was overwhelmed by the decision. "I feel good right now. I do, a little overwhelmed and distracted right now," Milke told reporters outside the court house.
Milke's ankle monitoring bracelet was removed in the hearing which lasted for less than two minutes.
"Here is a woman that suffered for years that maliciously was prosecuted. She was innocent. It was all based on a police officer that totally lied. To see her free today, free and exonerated is an unbelievable thing," said Michael Kimerer, Milke's attorney, about Saldate.
The two men who were convicted in the killing did not testify against Milke during the trial.
