Oakland County prosecutor seeking investigation into man’s 2006 conviction in deadly fire that killed 5 children
Prosecutor Karen McDonald concerned about potential ethical breaches
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PONTIAC, Mich. – Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said she is “gravely concerned” about potential ethical breaches after reviewing the 2006 murder conviction of Juwan Deering related to a deadly fire that killed five children.
Deering was sentenced on one count of arson and five counts of first-degree murder in connection to the April 2000 fire in Royal Oak Township.
According to a press release, McDonald determined that “evidence bearing on the credibility of three jailhouse informants had not been presented to the jury or disclosed to Mr. Deering’s attorney as required by law.”
Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald says an independent special prosecutor will investigate her own office after she discovered at least one case of what could be prosecutorial misconduct one that could call into question a number of convictions, and has already affected the prosecution of the men accused of conspiring to kidnap Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald
Credit mcdonaldforprosecutor.com
The case involves the 2006 conviction of Juwan Deering, who was found guilty of setting a house fire that killed five children in Royal Oak Township. Deering was convicted in part based on expert testimony about the fire that his attorney calls “junk science,” and the testimony of three jailhouse informants who said Deering confessed to the crime.
By Peg McNichol
May 14, 2021 | 10:08 AM
HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) The Michigan Innocence Clinic at the University of Michigan Law School has taken up the case of former Zeeland resident Karen Sue Boes.
She was convicted of killing her 14-year-old daughter Robin in 2002, and unsuccessfully appealed her case to the Michigan Supreme Court.
The Netflix show The Confession Tapes featured Boes’ story. The true-crime documentary examines claims by people convicted of murder that their confessions were coerced, involuntary or false.
Lawyers for Boes are asking a judge to set aside her conviction and order a new trial, based on what they are calling “junk science” used in her first trial.
Oakland County prosecutor launches probe into deadly arson case over potential ethical breaches
By Jack Nissen
(Photo via Michigan Department of Corrections)
PONTIAC, Mich. - The Oakland County prosecutor is launching a probe into the case of a man who was convicted of first-degree murder and arson after a fire in Royal Oak Township killed five children.
Prosecutor Karen McDonald announced plans to appoint a special prosecutor to conduct an independent investigation into Juwan Deering s conviction in 2006, which resulted in his life sentence.
The announcement follows ‘new developments’ recently uncovered by McDonald s office that called into question the credibility of jailhouse informants and potential breaches of ethics by former prosecutors that were assigned to the case. They potentially impacted Deering s right to a fair trial, a release said Friday.