Court rejects appeal in slaying of 14-year-old

LANSING (AP) — A Michigan appeals court again has rejected an appeal from a man convicted in the 2014 slaying of 14-year-old girl along a trail in suburban Detroit.

James VanCallis argued that he had ineffective legal representation, but WDIV-TV reports the Michigan Court of Appeals in an opinion issued last week said his counsel’s strategy was sound.

April Millsap was found dead in 2014 along the Macomb Orchard Trail in Armada, where she had been walking her dog.

VanCallis, now 36, was convicted of first-degree murder and other charges in April’s killing and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. An earlier appeal was denied in January.

VanCallis’ lawyer had argued that there was no DNA evidence linking VanCallis to the crime.

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