A Florida appeals court has thrown out the convictions of two men sentenced to life in prison for first-degree murder.
The Florida Times-Union reports that Florida's 1st District Court of Appeal on Thursday overturned the convictions of 35-year-old Charles Pearce and 24-year-old Theodist Richardson in separate cases.
A jury convicted Pearce of killing Michael McCue, a Jacksonville firefighter, and the attempted murder of McCue's father.
The court ruled that the trial judge erred in refusing to allow the defense to show part of a recorded police interview.
Richardson was convicted for the murders of 31-year-old Billy Johnson, 26-year-old Kenneth Curry and 19-year-old Danielle Melton. The court threw all of those out because the trial judge gave faulty jury instructions about self-defense.
Prosecutors say they are likely to retry both men.
