Steven Avery, subject of the Netflix series, "Making a Murderer," appealed his murder conviction at the Wisconsin Court of Appeals on Monday, requesting his 2005 guilty verdict for first-degree homicide be thrown out, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Avery served an 18-year prison sentence after he was found guilty of sexual assault, a crime he was exonerated of in 2003 based on DNA evidence. Two years later, Avery was convicted of murdering a 25-year-old photographer Teresa Halbach. Avery's nephew, Brendan Dassey was also found guilty for his involvement in the same murder, as HNGN previously reported.
Avery argued asked for his conviction to be overturned, arguing that authorities collected evidence in connection to Halbach's murder based on a search warrant that was valid only for a single property, but used it to investigate multiple properties, according to The Daily Beast.
"This warrant is clearly a warrant-less search or could clearly be stated that evidence seized or used at trial is clearly 'fruit of the poisonous tree,' illegally obtained evidence," Avery wrote in the appeal. "The affidavit was based on clearly falsified, misleading information."
Avery also argued that "Juror C.W." bullied the jury into convicting him by telling them that he was "f--king guilty," which "deprived Avery of an impartial jury trial." In addition, Avery stated that the conviction should not stand because the court allowed a juror to be replaced in the middle of deliberations.
Another one of Avery's arguments was that law enforcement mishandled evidence in the case, particularly the items recovered from Halbach's car discovered on Avery's property. Avery states that the evidence in question was not sealed by officials in a proper manner, making it easier for someone to plant his DNA inside.
