ROCKFORD Two years after he was acquitted of a first-degree murder charge, former Rockford resident Patrick Pursley is celebrating another legal victory.
Judge Joseph McGraw granted Pursley’s petition for a certificate of innocence on Friday in the 1993 shooting death of Andy Ascher.
Pursley was convicted of Ascher’s murder in 1994 and spent 23 years of a life sentence in prison before he was granted a new trial after ballistics tests showed the Taurus 9 mm handgun used to convict him was not the murder weapon.
“I am convinced by the preponderance of the evidence that Mr. Pursley is actually innocent of the charge,” McGraw said in court Friday.