Wrongly Convicted Database Record

 

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William Amor

 

Charge:

Murder and Arson

Sentence:

45 years

Years Imprisoned:

22

Year Crime:

1995

Year Convicted:

1997

Year Cleared:

2018

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Illinois

County or Region of Crime:

DuPage

City of Crime:

Naperville

Result:

Judicially Exonerated

Summary of Case:

"William Amor was wrongly convicted in 1997 of murder and arson in the death of 40-year-old Marianne Miceli on September 10, 1995 in the condominium she shared with Amor and his wife Tina Miceli. Twenty minutes before Marianne called 911 to report the fire Amor and his wife left. Marianne, Amor's mother-in-law, was overcome by smoke about a minute into her 911 call. Amor, his wife, and Marianne were all smokers. Amor's prosecution was based on his confession that he started the fire with a cigarette adn vodka-soaked paper. Amor later recanted as coerced during his lengthy police interrogation. Following his conviction by a jury Amor was sentenced to 45 years in prison. A post-conviction investigation determined that based on advances in fire science, that the fire was likely accidentally started. Amor filed a petition for a new trial based on the new evidence. Amor's petiton was granted and the DuPage County District Attorney's Office elected to retry Amor. Amor was released on bond on May 30, 2017. Amor waived his right to a jury trial. On February 21, 2018 DuPage County Judge Liam Brennan acquitted Amor following a bench trial, ruling that "The state's timeline and its theory of the case are fatally compromised” by the new arson science evidence testified to by three arson experts. Consequently, "The court cannot determine William Amor is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt." The defense experts testified an open flame fire would have created the smoky conditions in five minutes or less. Judge Brennan stated he doubted Marianne saw a fire until minutes before she called 911 and it was too late for her not to be overcome by the fumes."

Conviction Caused By:

False confession.

Innocence Proved By:

"On February 21, 2018 DuPage County Judge Liam Brennan acquitted Amor following a bench trial, ruling that "The state's timeline and its theory of the case are fatally compromised” by the new arson science evidence testified to by three arson experts. Consequently, "The court cannot determine William Amor is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt." The defense experts testified an open flame fire would have created the smoky conditions in five minutes or less. Judge Brennan stated he doubted Marianne saw a fire until minutes before she called 911 and it was too late for her not to be overcome by the fumes."

Defendant Aided By:

Post conviction by Illinois Innocence Project.

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

40

Age When Released:

62

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

White

Information Source 1:

"Man found not guilty at retrial of setting ’95 Naperville fire that killed mother-in-law, By Clifford Ward (Staff), Chicago Tribune, February 21, 2018"

Information Location 1:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/naperville-sun/news/ct-met-naperville-fire-death-acquittal-20180221-story.html

Information Source 2:

"William Amor released on bond, By Erin Hooley, Chicago Tribune, May 30, 2017"

Information Location 2:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/media/93448263-132.html

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Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org

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