In 2017, the State of Connecticut, acting through then Hartford State’s Attorney Gail Hardy, agreed that the 2001 murder conviction of Alfred Swinton should be vacated based on new DNA findings and the discrediting of other crucial evidence connecting Swinton to the murder of 28-year-old Carla Terry.

Dr. Karazulas, a bite mark analyst who had provided critical testimony linking Swinton to the 1991 murder, had testified at trial, based upon a reasonable degree of scientific certainty, that Swinton “caused the bite mark that is depicted in the photographs” of the victim’s breasts, and that the injury was inflicted “just before or at the time of death.” Then, years later, Karazulas acknowledged that bite mark evidence has been discredited by the scientific community and that he no longer considered this to be a valid scientific basis for his testimony.

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