PROVO, Utah — Douglas Stewart Carter will once again face trial for the 1985 murder of Eva Olesen.
On Tuesday, 4th District Court Judge Derek Pullan refused a defense request to order a new preliminary hearing, where they could try to get the case thrown out.
"We're very grateful. We've been at this for a long time," Olesen's daughter-in-law, Theresa, told FOX 13 News as she left the courthouse.
Carter's original conviction and death sentence for the home invasion murder of Olesen was thrown out by a judge, who found Carter's constitutional rights had been violated. The Utah Supreme Court upheld that decision. Provo police officers in the case were accused of threatening and bribing key witnesses in the case, and Carter has maintained his own confession was coerced.
"This is all new ground we’re treading here," Carter's attorney, Neal Hamilton, told the judge on Tuesday.
Hamilton argued that Carter is entitled to a new preliminary hearing, where attorneys could challenge police and witnesses on the depth of the misconduct.
"The misconduct began at the outset of this case," he argued.
But Judge Pullan sided with the Utah County Attorney's Office, who argued that any problems did not impact that stage of the proceedings.
The judge did rule against prosecutors who sought a DNA sample from Carter as they seek to re-prosecute their case, telling them they needed to get a warrant. Both the prosecution and defense did agree to have evidence in the case given to the Utah County Sheriff's Office and not the Provo Police Department.
If they obtain a conviction in this new trial, Utah County prosecutors have filed a notice that they intend to seek the death penalty again.
