Kezer's day in court

Fourteen years is a long time for a prison convict to maintain his innocence, but there are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of inmates around the country who insist they didn't commit the crime that sent them to prison. So why is the case of Joshua Kezer, who was convicted for the 1992 murder near Benton, Mo., of Angela Mischelle Lawless, different?

Since Scott County Sheriff Rick Walter reopened the case in 2006, several bothersome discrepancies have been found: physical evidence at the crime scene that doesn't match up to Kezer, changed testimony from witnesses, a witness who identified someone else as being near the crime scene and the indications that more than one person killed Lawless.

Cole County hearing set

In the face of this growing list of questionable evidence, and after three case reviews in Cole County Circuit Court (the Jefferson City Correctional Center, where Kezer is being held, is in Cole County), Cole County Circuit Judge Richard G. Callahan has set an evidentiary hearing for early December. During this hearing, Kezer's attorney will present witnesses and evidence in an effort to convince the judge that the wrong man was convicted.

While it would be inappropriate to assume the judge will accept the findings that point to Kezer's innocence, it is not too early to commend Sheriff Walter and his investigators for their thoroughness and persistence. Walter says that because of information obtained since 2006, the case against Kezer has fallen apart and that there is reason to believe more than one person was involved in the Lawless murder.

Keeping the public informed

Some credit for these latest developments also goes to those news outlets that have kept the public informed about this case, adding pressure to county and state officials to follow through on the questions that have been raised. This includes Southeast Missourian reporter Bridget DiCosmo, who has persistently sought and obtained facts relating to the Kezer case.