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U.S. NEWS Saturday 5 May 2018

Court vacates Kennedy cousin Skakel's murder conviction

By DAVE COLLINS in the exclusive Bell Ha- When the Supreme Court
Associated Press ven section of Greenwich ruled Friday, the panel in-
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — where Martha and Skakel cluded the same justices
In a stunning reversal, the were neighbors. that ruled in 2016 — minus
Connecticut Supreme At trial, prosecutors said Zarella. It included Justice
Court on Friday overturned Skakel was angry with Gregory D'Auria, a former
Kennedy cousin Michael Martha because she had lawyer in the state attorney
Skakel's murder conviction spurned his advances while general's office named to
in the 1975 bludgeoning having a sexual liaison with the court last year. D'Auria
death of a girl in wealthy his brother Tommy. was in the majority decision
Greenwich. Skakel's appellate lawyer, Friday.
The high court issued a 4-3 Hubert Santos, had asked The high court's reversal of
ruling that Skakel's trial at- the Supreme Court to re- a previous ruling is highly
torney failed to present evi- consider its 2016 ruling, re- unusual, legal observers
dence of an alibi. The same sulting in Friday's decision. said.
court in December 2016 "We're elated that our ar- Writing for the majority Fri- In this Feb. 24, 2016, file photo, Michael Skakel leaves the state
had reinstated Skakel's gument was vindicated," day, Justice Richard Palmer Supreme Court after his hearing in Hartford, Conn.
conviction after a lower Santos said Friday. "It was a said Skakel was prejudiced Associated Press
court ordered a new trial, good decision because it in the case by Sherman's
citing mistakes by the trial was spot on the law." failure to obtain alibi tes- attack the petitioner's (Ska- — as part of a Skakel family
attorney, Mickey Sherman. Santos argued that Sher- timony from witness Denis kel's) alibi — a complete ali- conspiracy to cover up the
It wasn't immediately clear man made poor decisions, Ossorio. bi for the time period during petitioner's involvement in
if prosecutors will subject including not focusing on "Without Ossorio's testimo- which it is highly likely that the victim's murder," Palmer
Skakel to a new trial. A Skakel's brother as a pos- ny, the state was able to the victim was murdered wrote.q
spokesman for Chief State's sible suspect and failing to
Attorney Kevin Kane said attempt to contact an alibi
prosecutors were reviewing witness. Santos said Ska-
the new ruling. He declined kel was several miles away
further comment. from the crime scene on
Skakel, a nephew of Robert Oct. 30, 1975 watching a
F. Kennedy's widow, Ethel Monty Python movie with
Kennedy, was convicted of friends when Moxley was
murder in 2002 in the death bludgeoned with a golf
of Martha Moxley in 1975 club.
when they were teenag- Santos also has said there
ers. He was sentenced to was no physical evidence
20 years to life in prison, but or eyewitnesses linking Ska-
was freed on $1.2 million kel to the killing.
bail after serving 11 years Sherman has defended his
behind bars when the low- work, and state prosecutors
er court overturned his mur- have argued he did an ad-
der conviction in 2013. equate job. The Associated
The case has drawn inter- Press left a message with
national attention because him Friday seeking com-
of the Kennedy name, Ska- ment on the ruling.
kel's rich family, numerous Conservative Justice Peter
theories about who killed Zarella wrote the majority
Moxley and the brutal way opinion when the highly di-
in which she died. Several vided Supreme Court rein-
other people, including stated Skakel's conviction
Skakel's brother Tommy in a 4-3 ruling in December
Skakel, have been men- 2016. Zarella left the court
tioned as possible killers. at the end of 2016 to return
The slaying took place to private practice.