Somewhat over every week after a Texas appellate court docket heard oral arguments relating to a grievance in opposition to an knowledgeable witness within the homicide trial of Antonio “A.J.” Armstrong Jr., justices ordered a decrease court docket to carry a listening to within the case as his attorneys search a retrial.
Armstrong, 25, was convicted in 2023 of murdering his dad and mom, Antonio Armstrong Sr. and Daybreak Armstrong, whereas they slept of their Bellaire-area dwelling in 2016. He was 16 years outdated on the time.
Whereas the 14th Courtroom of Appeals didn’t instantly handle whether or not or not a brand new trial is warranted, it did discover {that a} Houston-based district court docket “abused its discretion” in not granting the protection a listening to on its movement for a brand new trial.
The appeals court docket additionally didn’t rule on whether or not or not a Brady violation occurred, solely {that a} listening to ought to have been held in an effort to decide if a violation occurred. A Brady violation happens every time a prosecutor fails to reveal proof that might be favorable to the protection throughout trial.
Throughout final week’s oral arguments, A.J. Armstrong’s protection legal professional, Patrick F. McCann, argued that the state did not disclose a grievance filed in opposition to the prosecution’s knowledgeable witness, saying that would have affected the jury’s potential to guage the knowledgeable’s credibility. McCann had been requesting both a retrial or a listening to on whether or not a retrial may happen.
In accordance with court docket paperwork, the knowledgeable witness in query — Montgomery County crime scene investigator Celastina Rossi — had a grievance filed in opposition to her in 2019, claiming she had planted proof in one other case. The grievance was filed with the Texas Forensic Science Fee, which later dismissed the grievance, in keeping with on-line information.
In its order this week, the 14th Courtroom of Appeals stated the decrease court docket should “conduct a listening to on appellant’s movement for [a] new trial on or earlier than Jan. 6, 2026.”
Assistant Harris County District Legal professional Alan Curry represented the state throughout final week’s listening to and stated the prosecutors weren’t conscious of the grievance in opposition to Rossi, nor would her testimony have modified the end result of the case.
After the primary two homicide trials resulted in hung juries, a third trial occurred in 2023 and included new proof exhibiting that specks of blood have been discovered below the adhesive title tag positioned on Armstrong’s clothes when he was dropped at the police division for questioning within the aftermath of the murders.
Subsequent testing confirmed the DNA matched that of Armstrong’s father. Rossi had testified to the validity of this proof through the third trial. The jury within the third trial discovered Armstrong responsible, and he was sentenced to life in jail.
The Harris County District Legal professional’s Workplace declined to remark past its court docket filings within the appeals case.
Armstrong’s protection legal professional within the homicide trial didn’t instantly touch upon the ruling by the appeals court docket.
