Man who spent decades on death row in Utah ordered released on bail after no DNA match

September 28, 2026 / 8:58 PM EDT / CBS/AP

A Utah judge on Monday ordered a 71-year-old man who spent decades on death row for a 1985 killing to be released on bail, despite objections from the victim's family, after prosecutors said newly analyzed DNA evidence did not match him.

Douglas Stewart Carter was sentenced to death that same year after a jury found him guilty of murdering Eva Olesen, an aunt of the Provo police chief at the time.

The state Supreme Court ordered a new trial last year, citing misconduct by investigators. Carter has maintained his innocence and says a signed confession was coerced.

No physical evidence linked him to the crime scene, but the jury convicted Carter, a Black man, based on the confession and two witnesses who said he bragged about killing Olesen, who was White. Those witnesses later recanted.

Judge Derek Pullan said that the new DNA analysis further undermined the case against Carter, but a reasonable jury still could conclude that he murdered Olesen.

Pullan ordered Carter to wear a GPS monitor as a condition of his release and to avoid contact with Olesen's family.

Defense attorney Neal Hamilton said Carter will be placed…

Original source: https://www.cbsnews.com/healthwatch/