QUOTE OF THE DAY: “While my office stands by our prosecution and we believe the evidence supported a finding of guilty, we certainly respect the Court’s decision. ” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said in a statement. “This was a very complicated case originally based on fire science available at the time,” Berlin said. “Since that time, more than twenty years later, fire science has improved dramatically and consequently the evidence presented at this trial has changed from that presented in 1995.”
DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin.
--------------------------------------------------------
STORY: "Man acquitted in retrial for murder, arson in mother-in-law’s 1995 death," by reporter Luke Wilusz, published by The Chicago Sun-Times on February 21, 2018.
GIST: "A former Naperville man who spent 22 years in prison for
the 1995 death of his mother-in-law was found not guilty in a retrial
Wednesday. Following a seven-day bench trial, DuPage County Judge Liam
C. Brennan found 61-year-old William Amor not guilty of murder and
aggravated arson in connection with the death of Marianne Miceli,
according to a statement from the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s
Office. “This is the end of a nightmare for me,” Amor said in a
statement released by the Illinois Innocence Project, which represented
him. “I have fought to clear my name for the last 22 years and I
am so grateful that I was able to have my day in court for the truth to
be heard,” Amor said. “I am looking forward to starting the next phase
of my life as a free man, no longer labeled as a murderer, for the first
time in a long time.” On the evening of Sept. 10, 1995, Amor and his wife left
their Naperville apartment to go to a drive-in movie, according to the
Innocence Project. They shared the apartment with Amor’s mother-in-law,
Marianne Miceli, and when they returned, they found that a fire had
broken out and Miceli had died from smoke inhalation. On Sept. 17, 1997, Amor was convicted of murder and
aggravated arson for the fire that caused Miceli’s death, according to
the statement. He was sentenced to 45 years in prison. Brennan vacated Amor’s conviction in April 2017
after his attorneys claimed he was convicted based upon a confession
which was proven false and arson findings that are no longer
scientifically reliable, the Innocence Project said. His confession was
the basis for fire investigators to change their mind in 1995 to change
their initial finding of an “undetermined” cause of the fire to arson. Amor was released from custody in May 2017 and has remained free on bond during his retrial, according to the Innocence Project. “While my office stands by our prosecution and we believe
the evidence supported a finding of guilty, we certainly respect the
Court’s decision,” DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin said in a
statement. “This was a very complicated case originally based on fire
science available at the time,” Berlin said. “Since that time, more than
twenty years later, fire science has improved dramatically and
consequently the evidence presented at this trial has changed from that
presented in 1995.”
The entire story can be found at:
https://chicago.suntimes.com/news/man-acquitted-in-retrial-for-murder-arson-in-mother-in-laws-1995-death/
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the
Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. 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 Please
send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest
to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy;
Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog.
