It’s been 41 years since the state of Utah determined that a Black man, Douglas Stewart Carter, should be executed for a murder he’s spent decades denying he ever committed. Now, at age 71, Carter walked out of a courtroom on bail, beginning a new chapter in a case dating back to the ’80s.
New DNA testing has excluded Carter from genetic material recovered from the crime scene, forcing prosecutors to reconsider a case that has followed him through most of his adult life, according to The Guardian. Carter was convicted of killing Eva Olesen in 1985 after she was found shot and stabbed to death inside her Utah home. He was sentenced to death and spent decades waiting for an execution that never came. But the case against him has steadily unraveled.
According to the Associated Press, Carter’s conviction relied heavily on a confession he later said was coerced and testimony from two witnesses who eventually recanted their statements. The witnesses said investigators pressured them and offered incentives to lie on the witness stand. There was also no physical evidence directly tying Carter to the crime scene.
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The case eventually returned to court, and the Utah Supreme Court ordered a new trial after finding misconduct by investigators. Carter’s attorneys continued to challenge the conviction while seeking new testing of evidence preserved from the original investigation.
That testing produced a striking result. According to the AP, DNA analysis excluded Carter as a possible source of blood found on a doorknob and genetic material recovered from the handle of the knife used in Olesen’s killing.
The new evidence prompted prosecutors to withdraw their request for the death penalty. But Carter’s release does not mean the case is over.
Judge Derek Pullan ordered Carter released on bail, saying the DNA evidence further weakened the prosecution’s case, according to reports. But he did not prevent a jury from considering the remaining evidence. Carter must wear a GPS monitor and faces restrictions on contact with Olesen’s family, the BBC reported.
A new trial is scheduled for 2027, but for Carter, the freedom comes after most of his life has already passed.
His attorney, Neal Hamilton, has argued that the aggravated-murder charge should be dismissed. “We are profoundly grateful to see Doug finally go home, but we are also heartbroken by the theft of his life,” Hamilton wrote in a statement to KSL. “When Doug was arrested, he was a bright young man standing on the cusp of his future. He leaves custody a 71-year-old man hoping to enjoy what remains of the twilight years of his life.”
Olesen’s family is still waiting for something Carter’s release cannot provide: the identity of the person who killed her. Her daughter-in-law, Theresa Olesen, expressed skepticism about Carter’s release, saying a lack of DNA evidence “doesn’t mean he wasn’t there.”
She continued during the Monday (Sept. 28) hearing. “We just want justice for Eva. And if he had any part of it, we want that to be known.”
