Man in prison 10 years wins appeal, could go free

DETROIT (AP) -- A federal appeals court has overturned the murder conviction of a Detroit man who claimed his attorney did a poor job at trial. The Wayne County prosecutor's office has been ordered to put Jesse Peoples on trial again within 90 days or release him from a life sentence. He's been in prison for 10 years. The appeals court says trial attorney Ira Harris was ineffective by failing to raise key issues with two witnesses who testified against Peoples. The witnesses said Peoples was driving and sitting closest to a gun found in a stolen Jaguar. The court says Peoples provided his lawyer with a police report that showed he wasn't the driver, but Harris didn't use the information during trial. A message seeking comment was left for Harris. Published: Fri, Nov 1, 2013