Michael Morton always maintained his innocence of the murder of his wife, Christine, who was found dead in their Austin, Texas, home by a neighbor.  At trial, the prosecution argued that Morton beat his wife to death after she refused to have sex with him upon returning from his 32nd birthday celebration at a restaurant.  There were no witnesses or physical evidence linking Morton to the crime. 

After more than five years of court battles, the Innocence Project finally won a court order to conduct DNA testing on a bloodstained bandana found about 100 yards from the Morton’s home. In August 2011, the test results showed that the DNA belonged to Christine Morton and an unnamed man whose DNA was also linked to a similar murder that occurred later in Travis County. The man is currently being investigated for both crimes. On October 4, 2011, Michael Morton was freed, and he was later fully exonerated on December 19. Meanwhile, the State Bar of Texas is investigating the two prosecutors involved in his case for professional misconduct.

Morton was represented by the Innocence Project, Raley & Bowick, and Goldstein, Goldstein & Hilley.

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