ROBERT YELL

Cause of Conviction: Arson & Manslaughter

County: Logan

Trial/Plea: Trial

Race: White

Year: 2006

Sentence: 52

Time Served: 12

Date Sentence Vacated: December 28, 2016

Reason Sentence Vacated: Expert Arson Testimony

Cause of Wrongful Conviction: Junk Science

​In 2004, Yell’s trailer burned down, killing one of his children and severely injuring the other.  Arson investigators, using discredited techniques, determined it was arson. Though testing could not find the presence of any accelerant in the home, the Commonwealth was allowed to present testimony that an accelerant detection dog had alerted at several places in the trailer.  Yell was convicted of second-degree manslaughter, first-degree arson, fourth-degree assault, and PFO 2nd, and sentenced to 52 years in prison.

The convictions in this case were based upon the dog-sniff and discredited beliefs regarding flashover and whole-room involvement for fires. In 2016, DPA Post-Conviction Branch lawyers, using a KIP grant, were able to hire an expert who submitted an affidavit attesting to the scientific errors that were made in the initial investigation. The national Innocence Project filed an amicus brief supporting the motion. Based on this, the trial court held a two-and-a-half day evidentiary hearing where they heard from nationally-recognized experts in arson detection, who testified that the fire was not arson.  After granting a new trial on the bench, the trial court found that the opinions given by the experts at trial were based on obsolete and erroneous techniques, rules of thumb, and assumptions - none of which can be relied upon as true. The court has urged the Commonwealth to reexamine the evidence with new arson scientists who have not previously been involved in the case.

For more information about the case:

https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=5527