Utah judge orders Douglas Carter released on bail after 41 years on death row as DNA excludes him

A Utah judge has ordered 71-year-old Douglas Stewart Carter released on bail after 41 years on death row for a 1985 killing, after prosecutors said newly analysed DNA evidence did not match him, CNN reported.

Carter was sentenced to death in 1985 after a jury found him guilty of murdering Eva Olesen, the aunt of the Provo police chief at the time. The state Supreme Court ordered a new trial last year, citing misconduct by investigators, and Carter has always maintained his innocence, saying a signed confession was coerced.

No physical evidence linked Carter to the crime scene. The jury convicted him on the confession and the testimony of two witnesses who said he bragged about the killing — witnesses who later recanted, Stuff reported.

A DNA analysis received on 22 September excluded Carter as a possible match to blood found on a doorknob and genetic material recovered from the handle of the knife used to stab Olesen, who was also shot. Fourth District Judge Derek Pullan said the results further undermined the case, but that a reasonable jury could still conclude Carter killed Olesen. He ordered a GPS monitor as a condition of release, over objections from the victim’s family.

Utah County prosecutors withdrew their notice to seek the death penalty last week, and prosecutor Erwin Petilos told the judge on Monday that reassessing bail was “necessary and fair”. A two-month retrial remains scheduled for 2027.

“It’s not just as simple as, ‘Let’s let him go,’” defence lawyer Neal Hamilton said. “He’s being released with 41 years of state-induced trauma and the effect it will have on him is very real.”

Sources

• Matthew Brown / AP via CNN, “Man ordered released on bail after decades on Utah’s death row after DNA tests show no match to him”, 28 September 2026
• Stuff (AP), “US death row inmate released on bail after 41 years as DNA excludes him”, 28 September 2026