The judge in the Michael George murder case said today he’ll rule May 23 on a motion to overturn the jury conviction.
George, a retailer and co-founder of Pittsburgh Comic-Con, was convicted on March 17 of first-degree murder, felony firearm and insurance fraud in the 1990 killing of his first wife Barbara in the back of their Clinton Township, Mich., comic store.
This morning, Macomb County Circuit Judge James Biernat listened to arguments on the defense’s post-verdict request to set aside the jury’s decision. Biernat said the verdict, which was based entirely on circumstantial evidence, deserves careful consideration.
“Any injustice done in the name of justice is the worst injustice of all,” The Detroit Free Press quoted Biernat as saying.
May 15th, 2008 at 6:13 pm
Despite the nature of the case, it’s rare for a judge to overturn a jury verdict. The judge allowed the case to proceed and let the decision rest with the jury. Now the judge either was to backpedal on their decision, which may set a bad precedent/reputation for themselves, or let this case go to the appelate courts.
May 15th, 2008 at 8:48 pm
Verdicts are ALMOST ALWAYS completely judged on circumstantial evidence. This is true unless there is an actual eyewitness.
May 16th, 2008 at 7:40 am
Alan-
Or fingerprints, a murder weapon, DNA…
May 16th, 2008 at 10:14 am
Something to think about, the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office does not care about ‘Justice’, they care only about their Win/Loss record. Check the case of Nathaniel Hatchett. Even though he ‘confessed’, the Prosecutor’s office had DNA evidence that proved he did not do it. They purposely suppressed this evidence, continued with the case and won. It took 12 years to remedy this miscarriage of justice. Twelve years of a man’s life gone, all for the sake of a check in the win column.
May 16th, 2008 at 10:28 am
hey CCWC,
Anyone who admits to a crime they never committed deserves to be punished, just on grounds of sheer stupidity alone. Better yet, sterilize them so as to prevent them from breeding any stupid offspring…
May 16th, 2008 at 11:11 am
snikt snakt,
Coerced confessions are not uncommon, and they’re not frequently the fault of the suspect. How about Googling “Coerced Confession” and doing a little homework before commenting on the relative stupidity of a suspect, m’kay?
May 17th, 2008 at 10:08 pm
Did anybody watch this story on Dateline last week? It was a good story but I thought they went a little overboard with the comicbook graphics.
May 18th, 2008 at 10:19 am
Would this be a big deal if it didn’t involve comics?
May 18th, 2008 at 10:23 am
A big deal for whom?