Gerard Richardson; New Jersey; He seeks to vacate his 1994 murder conviction on the basis of DNA testing of a never tested bite mark swab which points to an unknown male and excludes him as a match. Star-Ledger.

STORY: "With new DNA evidence, convicted murderer files motion to vacate conviction in 1994 killing,"by reporter Bill Wichert, published by the Star-Ledger on September 18, 2013.

PHOTO-CAPTION:  "Gerard Richardson is seeking to overturn his murder conviction in the 1994 killing of an Elizabeth woman in light of new DNA evidence showing he did not leave a bite mark on the victim.New Jersey Department of Corrections."

GIST:  "Defense attorneys for a man convicted in the 1994 killing of an Elizabeth woman filed a motion today to vacate the murder conviction based on new DNA evidence suggesting he did not leave a bite mark on the victim. Gerard Richardson, 48, formerly of Elizabeth, is seeking a new trial in light of testing on a portion of a swab taken from the bite mark, where analysts found the DNA profile of an unknown male. Richardson, who was convicted in 1995, is serving a 30-year prison sentence for the murder of 19-year-old Monica Reyes. “The new DNA results provide previously unobtainable scientific proof that Monica Reyes was murdered by a third party and that Gerard Richardson did not commit this crime,” according to a brief filed by Richardson’s attorneys from the New York-based Innocence Project, a nonprofit legal clinic dedicated to exonerating wrongfully convicted people through DNA testing......... At Richardson’s trial in November 1995, a large part of the state’s case rested on the bite mark found on Reyes’ lower back. A forensic odontologist testifying on the state’s behalf said the bite mark matched Richardson’s teeth, but a defense expert argued that no such match existed. No DNA testing was used at the time of the trial. After earlier rounds of DNA testing – including one instance when the specimen was contaminated by an analyst’s DNA – the defense secured a court order in January to analyze a portion of the bite mark swab that had never been tested. Those test results, which were outlined in a July report by Forensic Analytical Sciences, found the DNA profile of an unknown male on the bite mark swab and excluded Richardson as a match."

The entire story can be found at:

http://www.nj.com/somerset/index.ssf/2013/09/based_on_dna_evidence_convicted_murderer_files_motion_to_vacate_conviction_in_1994_killing_of
 _elizab.html

 See: "Innocence Project says DNA exonerates suspect convicted in '94 Bernards murder; DNA may toss murder verdict." ........."After a Somerset County jury convicted Gerard Richardson in 1995 of the heinous murder of a 19-year-old Elizabeth woman, he remained defiant. He refused to admit that he had raped, pummeled and strangled Monica Reyes and left her for dead in a ditch of a private residential road in Bernards before shoving a 100-pound boulder over her head. "I'm never going to admit to something I didn't do," he declared before his sentencing in 1996. "And I'm going to keep fighting until I get my freedom back.""

http://www.app.com/article/20130903/NJNEWS14/309030005/Innocence-Project-says-DNA-exonerates-suspect-convicted-in-94-Bernards-murder?nclick_check=1

 PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.

I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at:

http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:

http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html

I look forward to hearing from readers at:

hlevy15@gmail.com;