KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt's office is taking aim at a Missouri judge's findings in a report issued last month on the 2003 murder case against Keith Carnes.
In his 111-page report, Judge William Hickle, a special master appointed in the case, found that a report from a confidential informant was not disclosed by the Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department to the trial counsel or the prosecutor’s office prior to trial.
Carnes is serving life in prison without parole in the murder of Larry White and has said he is innocent.
On Monday, Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt's office issued a response to the special master's report.
In the response, the attorney general's office stated that there is “no evidence that post-conviction counsel was denied access to the master file, nor any evidence about when the master file was received by post-conviction counsel.”
READ THE RESPONSE: Attorney general's office's exceptions to master report.
In his report, the special master concluded that all witnesses that Keith Carnes’ attorneys called in the case were credible.
In the response, Schmitt's office called the credibility of several of these witnesses into question.
Carnes is represented by Miracle of Innocence. The nonprofit recently filed a motion for his immediate release following the special master’s findings.
The Missouri Supreme Court denied the motion from Carnes’ legal team, but granted a motion to expedite proceedings in the case.
The order from the state supreme court said if there is a revised report, it must be filed on or before Feb. 11. It also said, “briefing and argument in this matter, if any, shall proceed pursuant to further order of this court.”
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