1/2 Price Gift Cards
DNA in Murder Not From Akron Police Captain
CLEVELAND – Attorneys for convicted killer Douglas Prade say they have new DNA evidence that proves his innocence.
Prade, 66, is in prison for the murder of his ex-wife, Dr. Margo Prade.
The former Akron police captain was convicted back in 1998, but has always maintained his innocence.
“I stand here talking to you as a convicted person,” Prade told Margo’s family in court in 1998, “but I am an innocent, convicted person.”
His attorneys say new DNA evidence shows that there is male DNA present on the lab coat of Dr. Prade – right above the spot on her arm where she was bitten.
That DNA does not match Douglas Prade.
“We think this is compelling evidence of innocence, says David Alden, Douglas Prade’s attorney.
But prosecutors see it differently.
“There is no new evidence that proves Mr. Prade’s claim of innocence,” says Summit County Prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh.
The state’s experts agree that the DNA in question is not a match for Douglas Prade.
But they say it is only a mixed and partial sample that could have been contaminated, and they question its relevance.
Both sides agree that DNA found under Margo’s fingernails also are not a match for Douglas Prade, but the state says that sample is also inconclusive.
A hearing has been set for later this month where a judge can set Prade free, order a new trial, or let his conviction stand.
