Relying on a Supreme Court decision about unanimous juries, a Louisiana appeals court has ordered a new trial for the man convicted of murder in a 2010 stabbing.
Aaron Orlando Richards was convicted in 2017 of the 2010 slaying of Timothy Falgout. Falgout was stabbed to death while delivering a pizza in Youngsville. A jury found Richards guilty of first-degree murder, with a 10-2 verdict.
But last year, in the Ramos v. Louisiana case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Sixth Amendment requires that guilty verdicts for criminal trials be unanimous.
Richards filed an appeal of his conviction based on Ramos, and the Third Circuit agreed with his appeal. His conviction was vacated, or thrown out, and a new trial was ordered.
