Brendan Dassey: US court set to reconsider 'Making a Murderer' case after overturning conviction
Brendan Dassey and his uncle Steven Avery were convicted in separate trials for the murder of photographer Teresa Halbach in 2005
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Your support makes all the difference.A US court is set to reconsider the decision to overturn the murder conviction of one of the cases chronicled in Netflix documentary Making a Murderer.
Brendan Dassey’s conviction was overturned last August after a judge found he gave a coerced confession when interviewed as a then 16-year-old with learning disabilities.
But Wisconsin Attorney General Brad Schimel’s appeal for the case to be reheard has been granted by the US 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to present new oral arguments.
The now 27-year-old has never been released and will be kept behind bars during the appeals process.
Dassey and his uncle Steven Avery were convicted in separate trials for the murder of photographer Teresa Halbach in 2005.
Her charred remains were found in a burn pit on Avery’s property, roughly 80 miles north of Milwaukee.
The case drew international attention after the story of Steven Avery’s life featured in the Emmy-winning documentary.
Avery had previously served 18 years in prison for an unrelated rape in 1985 but was exonerated by DNA evidence.
Months later he filed a $36 million (£27m) lawsuit against the county but the next year, he and Dassey were accused of Ms Halbach’s murder.
Producers of the 10-part series focused on the alleged mishandling of the case and heavily implied authorities planted evidence in order to achieve a conviction, a claim vehemently denied by the Sheriff’s office.
Dassey’s new case will be heard by the full 12-member circuit court on 26 September.
Additional reporting by Reuters
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