Kathleen Zellner, the attorney for “Making a Murderer” subject Steven Avery, said Monday that she filed a motion to test the bones left in a Manitowoc County gravel pit to prove that Avery was framed in the murder of Teresa Halbach.
“We are pleased to announce that one of the world’s leading DNA experts, Dr. Richard Selden @drrichardselden, is willing to test the bones in the Manitowoc County Gravel Pit with new Rapid DNA ID,” Zellner tweeted on Monday. “If this testing is allowed, we believe the bones will be Ms. Halbach’s.”
She added, “This will prove the murder and mutilation occurred in the Manitowoc County Gravel Pit and the bones were planted in Mr. Avery’s burn pit to frame him.”
Bone fragments believed to be Halbach’s were found in Avery’s burn pit, which prosecutors used to make their case that Avery and his nephew Brendan Dassey killed the photographer. Avery’s defense contends that Halbach left the Avery property after meeting him on Oct. 31, 2005, and was killed elsewhere.
Court documents obtained by TheWrap indicate that Zellner filed a motion “of appeal and remand the cause for new scientific testing” on Monday,” which is now pending.
Answering to a fan, Zellner said her team filed a motion on Monday afternoon “asking the Appellate Court to remand the case for this testing to take place.” She added that the specific testing she intends to do differs from previous tests because it “works rapidly” and “has the ability to gather more data than traditional DNA testing.”
Yes, this will include the pelvic bone that was found in a Manitowoc County gravel pit, far away from where the other bones were found in Avery’s burn pit.
If the bones turn out to be Halbach’s, Zellner said “it would refute the State’s entire theory that she was killed on the Avery property in Avery’s garage and burned in his burn pit. That type of evidence reverses convictions.”
Last month, Zellner shared on Twitter what she said was new evidence that implicated Brendan Dassey’s brother, Bobby.
“Making a Murderer Part 2” premiered on Netflix on Oct. 19. The first season of “Making a Murderer,” which chronicled the 2005 murder of Halbach and the conviction of Avery and his nephew, Brendan Dassey, premiered in 2015 and quickly became a worldwide phenomenon. Avery was sentenced to life in prison, and a Federal Appeals court upheld a ruling that Dassey’s confession was involuntary and that investigators violated Dassey’s rights. However, in June, the Supreme Court declined to hear his case.
Zellner is currently appealing Avery’s conviction, although a circuit court judge denied him a new trial. Her brief to the appeals court is due by Dec. 20.
You can read Zellner’s entire thread here. TheWrap has reached out to Zellner for additional comment.
Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.