a Norfolk Circuit Court judge cited an unreliable police confession...

a Norfolk Circuit Court judge cited an unreliable police confession in overturning the conviction of one of three men who maintain they have been wrongly imprisoned for the rape and murder of a woman 8 years ago.
Judge Everett Martin found that Derek Tice's confession to police was admitted as evidence, even though Tice had invoked his right to remain silent.
"There was no fingerprint, DNA, or other scientific evidence against him; no independent eyewitnesses implicated him; no physical evidence directly implicated him," the judge wrote.
"I find there is a reasonable probability the jury would have acquitted (Tice) if his confession had not been admitted into evidence."
Tice, Joseph Dick Jr. and Danial Williams were convicted for the July 1997 stabbing and strangulation of Michelle Moore-Bosko in her home.
Attorneys have said that Detective R. Glen Ford told the suspects they would face the death penalty if they did not acknowledge guilt.
Tice remains in Sussex II state prison. He is scheduled to appear in court on Dec. 20.