Monday, September 22, 2008

Paul House Update #2

I've previously written about Paul House's case here and here. Mr. House has finally been released on bond while awaiting retrial but as of now, the prosecutor is still planning on retrying the case.

There has now been yet another development. Results of another DNA test have come back, providing further doubt that the state has the right guy. This time, the state was able to do DNA testing on the hair that was found clutched in the victim's hand. It did not match House or the victim. The article I saw on it did not provide any other information on that sample, like whether it did match anyone else or whether it had even been tested against anyone else (like the victim's husband, who is the prime suspect in the eyes of the defense).

Previously, the prosecutor had said if the hair test came back not matching House, he would finally drop the case. Now that the result has come back, though, he's changing his tune a bit. Now the prosecutor is suggesting that the hair could still have been on House; it was just transferred onto him from someone else he was with that night. As this case continues to deteriorate, the prosecution just refuses to admit that it might have the wrong guy. Instead, they continue to change their story about how it all went down. Remember, the state had prosecuted House on the theory that he had raped and killed the victim, based on the sperm found on her nightgown. When that sperm turned out to match her husband, well they just changed their whole theory of why House killed her.

Keep in mind that House now suffers from multiple sclerosis and is in a wheelchair. He's served over 20 years in prison for a crime that has one other solid suspect (the husband), no DNA linking him to the crime, and some unknown person's hair clutched in the victim's hand. I think it's time for the prosecutor to stick to his word and let the nearly non-existent case against Paul House go. I understand that it's hard to admit being wrong. I don't like it either. No one does. But a prosecutor has a greater responsibility and just has to be able to put his/her own ego aside for the sake of doing the right thing. The right thing in this case really is to let Paul House be done with this charge.

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