Murder Convict Likely To Receive New Trial Released On Bail

DALLAS, TX.(AP) – A convicted murderer likely to receive a new trial has been released from Dallas County Jail on bail.

Clay Reed Chabot was freed Wednesday after posting a $500,000 bond. He has spent the last 21 years in prison but last month a state district judge recommended a new trial.

A DNA test in June refuted the testimony of the prosecution’s key witness from the 1986 trial for the murder of a 28-year-old Garland woman.

The witness testified that Chabot raped and killed the woman, but a DNA test of physical evidence implicated the witness and specifically excluded Chabot.

Dallas County prosecutors agree that Chabot’s trial was unfair and that he deserves a new one. But they say they believe he is still guilty and they intend to retry the case.

(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)