KALAMAZOO (WKZO AM/FM) — The Nemo Dodd murder case could have to be retried in a Kalamazoo courtroom after the State Supreme Court has now ruled that Brian Roberts didn’t get a fair trial.
Expert witnesses testified at his original trial that 2-year old Nehemiah Dodd suffered the kind of injuries one might get in a “train wreck or a car crash”, saying he was the victim of child abuse.
Robert’s has based his appeal on the argument that his lawyer failed to do his job, because he never called an expert to refute that testimony.
Apparently there are experts who have very different opinions on Shaken Baby Syndrome and other kinds of injuries suffered by children.
Kalamazoo Asst. Prosecutor Heather Bergman told the High Court it would not have made any difference, because Roberts told authorities several stories about what happened, including that the boy fell down a flight of stairs.
But Justice Richard Bernstein disagreed, saying if it was a battle of experts, it was a failure on the part of the defense not to call any experts.
Roberts is serving life without parole at the State Prison in Ionia.
It will be up to the Prosecutor to decide whether to retry the case, or pursue a plea deal.
