GIST: "The North Carolina Court of Appeals on Tuesday ordered a new murder trial for a Cary man convicted more than two years ago of strangling his wife, who he says went jogging one Saturday morning and never returned home. Brad Cooper, 39, is serving a life prison sentence for first-degree murder in the July 2008 death of Nancy Cooper, whose body was found in a drainage ditch in a cul-de-sac of an undeveloped subdivision near their home. The appeal of his May 2011 conviction centered on rulings that Wake County Superior Court Judge Paul Gessner made regarding a Google Maps search of the site where Nancy Cooper's body was found – the only concrete evidence linking Brad Cooper to the crime. State witnesses testified during the trial that the search was performed the day before she disappeared, but defense attorneys contended that someone tampered with the computer. The Appeals Court's decision was unanimous. "The trial court did err in limiting (Jay) Ward's testimony in such a manner that prevented him from testifying concerning data retrieved from the laptop, including the Google Maps files," the three-member panel said in its 56-page ruling. Ward was a network security professional but was found by the trial court not to be qualified as a forensics computer analyst. Another expert witness for the defense, Giovanni Masucci, also wasn't allowed to testify about the files, partly because the judge found that his name was not on a potential witness list, as required by law. "The Google Map files recovered from the defendant's laptop were perhaps the most important pieces of evidence admitted in this trial," the appeals court said. "We hold that the trial court abused its discretion in excluding Ward from testifying, relying on the state's own evidence, to his opinion that the Google Maps files recovered from the defendant's laptop had been tampered with."......... If the state decides not to appeal the ruling or the Supreme Court either upholds the decision or declines to hear the case, it would wind up back in Superior Court. Prosecutors would then decide whether to try the case again, reach a plea agreement or decide not to re-try the case."
The entire story can be found at:
http://www.wral.com/nc-appeals-court-orders-new-trial-for-brad-cooper/12845368/
Helpful background at:
http://www.justiceforbrad.com/
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STORY: N.C. (North Carolina) appeals court orders new trial for Brad Cooper," published by WRAL on September 3, 2013.