AUGUSTA — A Maine legislative committee has rejected a bill that could have given convicted killer Dennis Dechaine a shot at a new trial.
Judiciary Committee members voted unanimously today to reject the bill, which would have allowed the consideration of DNA evidence collected after Dechaine’s conviction in the 1988 murder of 12-year-old Sarah Cherry in Bowdoin.
Dechaine, who’s serving a life sentence, says he’s innocent.
According to Maine Public Broadcasting Network, Rep. Paul Waterhouse of Bridgton said the bill was problematic and that he considered it “trial by Legislature.”
The committee’s vote followed emotional testimony earlier this week from Sarah Cherry’s family and an appeal from Maine’s attorney general not to pass the bill.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.