Charges against father and stepmother in South Carolina dismissed in 1989 cold case death of 5-year-old
About thirty-five years after the remains of a five-year-old boy were discovered close to his family's home, the father and stepmother were indicted, CNN had reported earlier.
The judge, named Roger Young, concluded that the original investigator on the case had altered his perceptions of the evidence. Since over twenty witnesses had passed away or were unable to testify, the couple couldn't contest the claims made against them and question the witnesses who asserted the couple had made damning remarks.
Judge Young also prohibited the prosecutors from charging the couple again, as per The Associated Press.
Victor Lee Turner and Megan Lee Turner expressed their innocence outside the courtroom after the dismissal of charges. "I'm relieved it's over with," said Victor Lee. "I'm still upset about it. That's all I can say about it at the moment, but I can hold my head up a little bit."
Megan Renee Turner added, "We didn't do it."
In his judgement, the judge said, "This is a circumstantial evidence case which mainly depends on supposedly incriminating statements made to third parties. This lack of testimony from those witnesses for cross-examination would be extremely prejudicial to the defense," according to the AP. The detective who handled the case in 1989 was rehired by the Berkeley County Sheriff's Office in 2021 to evaluate unsolved cases.
The Ninth Circuit Solicitor's Office issued a statement saying, "Judge Young has fulfilled the oath of his position by adhering to the law. As the testimony at the motions hearing revealed, the passage of time since the heinous crime occurred has led to missing witness testimonies and unavailable evidence. Additionally, any errors committed in 1989 couldn't be rectified."
The affidavit given to CNN by the Berkeley County Sheriff's Office in January stated the Turners, from Cross Hill, had misreported their son as missing on March 3, declaring he'd never left the school bus. However, witnesses confirmed that the boy had never been on the bus and hadn't gone to school on that day.
Both Turner parents emerged as the "final and only people" to witness their child alive before his death, suggested the documents released in April.
The Sheriff of Berkeley County, Duane Lewis, said in a statement, "This isn't the ending we hoped for but we understand the technicality of prosecuting cases from crimes that happened many years ago."
The relatives of Justin Turner, while requesting privateness, expressed their displeasure with the justice system.
"Given the weight of evidence, the responsible individuals for Justin's death had the chance to face justice here, but they chose to stay mute and confront the ultimate justice imposed by God for the eternity!"
Read also:
Despite the dismissal of charges, the Turners continue to maintain their innocence. "We didn't do it," Megan Renee Turner reiterated.
The Turners, being the last people to see their son alive, were the focus of the investigation.
