The high court announced its decision in Widmer’s second appeal on Wednesday, denying jurisdiction in a 5 to 2 vote. Justices Judith Lanzinger and William O’Neill dissented.
Michelle Berry-Godsey’s second appeal asked the justices to consider whether Widmer’s request to have his wife’s DNA tested to see if she suffered from Long QT — a rare disorder that causes people to pass out and drown when they are near or in a body of water — should have been allowed.
Legal experts have all said Widmer stands a better chance of securing a fourth trial in the federal court.
The 12th District Court of Appeals reasoned the state statutes refer only to testing of the defendant’s biological tissue and declined to broaden the scope.
The Supreme Court only accepts about 7 percent to 12 percent of discretionary appeals filed. Widmer’s father, Gary, has said he thinks his son has a better chance of getting a new trial at the federal court level.
Widmer is serving a 15-year to life sentence for the 2008 drowning death of his wife. The first trial in 2009 ended in a mistrial over juror misconduct. The second jury was hung and a third jury found him guilty in 2011.
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