ST. LOUIS — A ºüÀêÊÓƵ judge ordered a man judged innocent of a 1990 murder to be released from prison Wednesday, effective immediately, calling ongoing attempts by the Missouri Attorney General to keep him incarcerated "an affront to the rule of law."
In an emergency hearing, ºüÀêÊÓƵ Judge Jason Sengheiser said it was "problematic" that Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey called prison officials and ordered them to keep Christopher Dunn locked up despite Sengheiser's Monday order releasing him.
"This court is not going to tolerate that," Sengheiser said.
The Missouri Department of Corrections plans to comply with Sengheiser's order, said spokesperson Karen Pojmann.
“Barring a new court order that supersedes the current court order, Mr. Dunn will be released before 6 p.m.,†Pojmann said.
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Dunn, 52, was convicted nearly 34 years ago of the murder of 15-year-old Ricco Rogers in the city's Wells-Goodfellow neighborhood.Â
In May, a team of lawyers including the ºüÀêÊÓƵ Circuit Attorney's Office and Midwest Innocence Project argued his conviction should be overturned after two boys who helped secure his conviction recanted their eyewitness testimony as adults.
Bailey's office opposed those efforts, arguing that the witnesses were coerced into testifying and the conviction should stand.
Then, on Monday, Sengheiser ruled that Dunn was actually innocent and should be released. Bailey's office quickly filed a notice of appeal and ordered prison officials not to let him go.
ºüÀêÊÓƵ Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore said Tuesday his office was formulating a strategy to secure Dunn's release. And on Wednesday afternoon, Sengheiser called an emergency hearing.
Gore and attorney Justin Bonus, who represents Dunn, argued Bailey's office has no authority to appeal. And beyond that, the state has no authority to keep him in prison since he is no longer convicted of a crime.
"It's a violation of his civil rights, frankly," Bonus said.
Lawyers for Bailey's office, however, argued that the Missouri Court of Appeals — not Sengheiser — has the authority to stop their appeal and that Dunn should stay put while that process plays out.
Bailey's office did not immediately comment after Sengheiser's latest order.
Sengheiser disagreed. He said if Bailey wanted the right to appeal cases like Dunn's he should ask the legislature to give him that authority.
"What he cannot do and what he should not do is call prison officials and tell them to disobey a court order," he said.
He ordered Dunn to be released from the South Central Correctional Center in Licking, Missouri, immediately. If his order wasn't followed, he said, he would file to hold them in contempt.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.