The decades-old Boulder murder case of Marty Grisham is lurching back into crisis, with the defense asking a judge to throw out the homicide charges against Michael Clark rather than let prosecutors try him again. Clark, whose conviction was vacated this spring amid fresh doubts about DNA work tied to the state crime lab, is out of prison on bond while both sides fight over whether a second trial is even possible. His lawyers say the case file is so gutted and aged that putting him back in front of a jury would be fundamentally unfair.
Defense motion slams delay, lost evidence and crime lab conduct
In a 72-page motion filed Friday, the defense argues that roughly 32 years have passed since the 1994 killing, a delay they say has left key witnesses dead, memories badly faded and important pieces of evidence lost or destroyed. The filing accuses the state crime lab of “outrageous conduct” and takes aim at what it calls a serious conflict of interest involving Ryan Brackley, a prosecutor on Clark’s original case who later represented the CBI analyst now at the center of the scandal, according to reporting by the Denver Gazette. The defense is essentially telling the court that after three decades and a lab meltdown, you cannot just hit the reset button.
Outside DNA retests and how the conviction came apart
The motion leans heavily on independent DNA work that undercut the original Colorado Bureau of Investigation analysis. An outside lab, Bode Technologies in Virginia, re-examined key items and generated results that clashed with the CBI’s earlier conclusions and, in some retests, statistically excluded Clark from DNA found on a lip-balm container, according to Colorado Politics. After those results and related questions landed on its desk, the Boulder County District Attorney’s Office asked a judge to vacate Clark’s 2012 conviction and reinstate his bond, according to a county press release. That move cleared the way for a retrial on paper, even as the evidence record was buckling under scrutiny.
CBI scandal still driving the drama
All of this plays out against the backdrop of the widening scandal at the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. The controversy focuses on former CBI analyst Yvonne “Missy” Woods and the agency’s review of her past work. In a public update, CBI reported that it had identified 1,045 impacted cases and noted that Woods faces more than 100 felony counts. The agency’s own materials describe a sweeping re-examination effort that has pushed prosecutors and local crime labs across Colorado to retest and re-review older evidence while they decide whether any earlier, potentially tainted findings can still support criminal cases.
Court calendar, hearings and what comes next
The next move belongs to the judge. A hearing is set for May 5 to establish a deadline for the prosecution’s written response to the defense dismissal bid, according to court filings and media accounts. It is not yet clear when the judge will rule on whether the case survives. The court has also sketched out a roadmap in case the charges stand, with a motions hearing and a tentative May 11 trial date, as reported by Denver7. For now, those dates function more like placeholders than promises.
High stakes for the DA and for Clark
If the judge grants the dismissal request, prosecutors will be forced to drop the case entirely. If the motion is denied, the Boulder County District Attorney’s Office will then have to confront the practical problem of rebuilding a 1994 investigation in which witnesses and physical evidence have significantly deteriorated. The office has already said that moving to vacate Clark’s earlier conviction “was the right thing to do” and has pledged to carefully re-evaluate whatever evidence remains before deciding how to proceed, according to the county press release. Either way, the ruling on this motion will likely determine whether Clark ever faces a jury again in the Grisham murder.
