USA - Idaho. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the death sentence of Lacey Sivak

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the death sentence of Lacey Sivak. Sivak was sentenced to death for the 1981 murder of Dixie Wilson, during a robbery at a gas station. The appellate court said that while his conviction was appropriate, the outcome of his sentencing hearing might have been different if prosecutors hadn't knowingly presented the testimony of an inmate who perjured himself. Sivak's attorney, Bruce Livingston with the Federal Defender Services of Idaho, said the false testimony was at the heart of the case. The appellate court said state attorneys could decide to hold a new sentencing hearing if they still want to seek the death penalty for Sivak's crimes. The court also noted that the other man accused of the crimes, Randall Bainbridge, had been sentenced to life in prison for the same killing. According to court records, Dixie Wilson, a 30-year-old mother of three children, was killed on April 6, 1981, when she was shot at least five times in the head and face and stabbed approximately 20 times in the head, neck and shoulder.