Douglas Stewart Carter, 71, was released on bail late Monday after prosecutors stated that newly analyzed DNA evidence excluded him as the source of biological material recovered from key items in the 1985 killing of Eva Olesen. Carter had spent decades on death row for the murder, which occurred in Provo, Utah. He is required to wear a GPS monitor and avoid contact with the victim's family while awaiting a new trial.
The DNA analysis, received on Sept. 22, excluded Carter as a match to blood found on a doorknob and genetic material from the handle of a knife used to stab Olesen. Olesen was found tied up, stabbed and shot inside her home on Feb. 27, 1985, during what investigators suspected was a robbery. Judge Derek Pullan noted that while the findings further undermined the case against Carter, a jury could still determine he committed the crime.
Carter has maintained his innocence, arguing that he was coerced into signing a confession after fleeing Utah in April 1985 over an unrelated assault suspicion. He was detained two months later in Nashville, Tennessee, where he signed the confession while under interrogation by a Provo detective. The original jury convicted him based on that confession and the testimony of two witnesses who claimed Carter bragged about the killing. Those witnesses later recanted, stating in 2011 that police and prosecutors had threatened them with deportation if they did not implicate Carter. They also admitted receiving cash and gifts for their testimonies.
The Utah Supreme Court ordered a new trial last year, citing multiple instances of intentional misconduct by police and a prosecutor. In response to that order, DNA evidence was re-analyzed. Utah County prosecutor Erwin Petilos argued to the judge on Monday that reviewing Carter's bail conditions was appropriate and just as the state reviews the remaining case files. County prosecutors withdrew a notice last week indicating they wanted to pursue the death penalty for a retrial planned for next year.
Carter's attorney, Neal Hamilton, said Carter will stay near his son, Tyler Anger, who was adopted by another family as an infant and did not learn of his father's conviction until years later. Hamilton said Carter will need therapy to deal with his extended incarceration and urged prosecutors to seek dismissal of an aggravated murder charge still pending against him. Hamilton stated that if the state of Utah had proceeded without the discovery of misconduct, Carter would have been executed 15 or 20 years ago.
Theresa Olesen, a daughter-in-law of the victim, expressed serious concerns about Carter's release during the bond hearing. She said the family wanted justice for Eva Olesen and noted that the DNA results did not mean Carter was not present at the scene. Defense attorneys for Carter, who is Black, have stated that witnesses saw a White man fleeing the crime scene and that an investigator suppressed evidence implicating other suspects, including the victim's husband, Orla Olesen. Orla Olesen died in 2009.