Crime · updated 1h ago · 2 min read
Douglas Carter Released On Bail After DNA Evidence Excludes Him In Eva Olesen Murder
DNA analysis excluded him as suspect in 1985 Eva Olesen killing. 71-year-old Carter spent about 41 years on death row before bail release.
Carter’s release conditions and restrictions.
3 of 5 outlets skipped it: hamilton says Carter needs therapy and would not speak to journalists.
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The Guardian
“He will have to wear a GPS monitoring device until a new trial begins.”Read the original ↗
Both report GPS monitoring, but The Guardian stresses duration until retrial.
Bail after DNA shift
Douglas Stewart Carter, 71, was released on bail after prosecutors said newly analysed DNA evidence did not link him to the crime for the 1985 murder of Eva Olesen in Provo, Utah. Judge Derek Pullan ordered Carter’s release on bail despite objections from Olesen’s family, and the court required Carter to wear a GPS monitor while awaiting a new trial. Prosecutors said DNA analysis excluded Carter as a possible match to blood found on a doorknob and genetic material recovered from the handle of the knife used to stab Olesen.
Carter had been convicted of killing Olesen and sentenced to death in 1985, and the state Supreme Court later ordered a new trial after citing misconduct by investigators. Carter has maintained his innocence and said the signed confession he gave during interrogation was coerced.
Witnesses, family, and lawyers
Olesen’s daughter-in-law, Theresa Olesen, told the court that her family had "serious concerns" about Carter’s release and said, "It doesn't mean he wasn't there." Neal Hamilton, Carter’s lawyer, urged the case to be dismissed and told the Associated Press, "If the state of Utah had their way, he would have been executed 15, 20 years ago before we discovered the misconduct." The case relied on a confession and testimony from two witnesses, and the witnesses later said in 2011 that they were told to lie in court and were given cash and gifts by police.
The Utah Supreme Court ordered a new trial last year, citing misconduct by investigators, and it also found misconduct that included withholding evidence from the defense and encouraging false testimony. Carter’s defense also argued that witnesses saw a white man leaving the crime scene and that an investigator suppressed evidence pointing to Orla Olesen, who died in 2009.
What happens next
Utah County prosecutors withdrew a notice that they intended to seek the death penalty, while they continued reviewing the evidence to decide how to proceed after the DNA results. Erwin Petilos told the judge that reassessing Carter’s bail was "necessary and fair" as the state continued to look at the remaining evidence in the case. Judge Derek Pullan said the latest scientific results further weakened the case against Carter, but he added that a reasonable jury still could conclude that Carter killed Olesen.
Carter’s release came with conditions including a ban on any contact with Olesen’s family and mandatory electronic GPS monitoring until a new trial begins. Prosecutors and the defense both pointed to different next steps, with Hamilton seeking dismissal of an aggravated murder charge still pending while the case awaited a new trial.