A US judge has granted bail to Douglas Stewart Carter, 71, who was wrongly convicted of murdering Eva Olsen in 1985 and spent 41 years in prison. Carter was convicted based on a coerced confession and witness testimony, but new DNA evidence has cast doubt on his guilt. On September 29, 2026, the judge granted Carter bail, allowing him to be released from prison pending a new trial.
On February 27, 1985, Olsen was found murdered in her home in Provo, Utah, with multiple stab wounds and a gunshot to the head. The police investigation implicated Carter, who was living with his mother in Utah at the time. He was arrested in Nashville, Tennessee, and confessed to the crime under questioning. However, Carter has consistently maintained that his confession was coerced.
The prosecution's case relied heavily on the testimony of Epifanio Tovar and his wife Lucia, who later recanted their statements. The couple claimed that the police had pressured them into making false statements and had provided them with financial assistance. In 2011, the couple was found in Mexico, and they revealed that they had been coerced into testifying against Carter.
In 2025, the Utah Supreme Court upheld the reversal of Carter's conviction and sentence, citing misconduct by the prosecution, including the suppression of evidence and the coercion of false testimony. The court also noted that the police had hidden information that could have implicated Olsen's husband, Orla Olsen, who died in 2009.
New DNA evidence has further weakened the case against Carter. The analysis of DNA samples from the crime scene and a knife found near Olsen's body did not match Carter's DNA. While the prosecution has stated that this does not necessarily exonerate Carter, the judge has granted him bail pending a new trial.
Carter's family and lawyers have long maintained that he was innocent, and they are now seeking to have the charges dropped. However, the prosecution has indicated that it will pursue a new trial. Carter's lawyers have expressed concerns that the prosecution will try to retry him based on the same flawed evidence that led to his original conviction.
The case has raised concerns about the reliability of the US justice system and the use of coerced confessions and false testimony. Carter's release after 41 years in prison is a rare instance of justice being served, but his case highlights the need for ongoing efforts to ensure that the justice system is fair and reliable.
Key points
- New DNA evidence has cast doubt on Douglas Stewart Carter's guilt in the 1985 murder of Eva Olsen.
- Carter's conviction was based on a coerced confession and witness testimony that has since been recanted.
- The prosecution has indicated that it will pursue a new trial, despite the weaknesses in the original case.
