HOUSTON, Oct. 1 (UPI) -- The Houston district attorney says a man who spent 17 years in prison for rape was wrongly convicted, but the inmate may still face a new trial.
District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal said Thursday there was flawed testimony by a lab technician in the trial of George Rodriguez, the Houston Chronicle reported.
Rosenthal said his office is still considering whether to retry Rodriguez in the 1987 abduction and rape of a 14-year-old girl in Houston.
Another suspect was suggested in the initial investigation, but during the trial a lab supervisor said blood tests had eliminated the man. Results of new tests received this week found that testimony was unfounded, Rosenthal said.
Rodriguez could be released within a week after his attorneys have filed the papers needed to nullify the conviction.
The Houston police DNA lab was closed in December 2002 after allegations of questionable scientific work. One man has already been released from prison and pardoned after it was found that faulty DNA work led to his rape conviction.
