Barton McNeil Wikipedia: Is He Free After Christina McNeil’s Death? Release Date Update
Barton McNeil is a man who has spent more than two decades in prison for a crime he claims he did not commit. He was convicted of murdering his 3-year-old daughter, Christina McNeil, in 1998, and sentenced to life without parole. However, he has always maintained his innocence, and pointed to his ex-girlfriend, Misook Nowlin, as the real killer.
Wang is currently serving a 55-year sentence for strangling her mother-in-law, Linda Tyda, in 2011. McNeil’s supporters believe that Wang’s violent history and obsession with money and jealousy make her a viable suspect in Christina’s death.
They also argue that new forensic evidence and witness testimony cast doubt on McNeil’s guilt and the state’s theory of the case. McNeil is seeking a new trial with the help of the Illinois Innocence Project, but the prosecutors are pushing back and trying to dismiss his petition. Will McNeil ever get a chance to prove his innocence and walk free? Here is what we know about his case and his current status.
The Tragic Death of Barton McNeil’s Daughter Christina McNeil
On June 16, 1998, Barton McNeil, a 39-year-old divorced father, woke up on the couch after a stormy night. He went to check on his daughter, Christina, who was sleeping in her bedroom. To his horror, he found her lifeless body on the bed, covered with a sheet. He called 911 and tried to perform CPR, but it was too late. Christina was pronounced dead at the hospital.
The police initially treated the case as a possible accident or natural death, but soon changed their mind after the autopsy revealed signs of suffocation and sexual abuse. The pathologist who examined Christina’s body concluded that she had died of asphyxia due to smothering, and that she had suffered vaginal and anal injuries consistent with sexual assault. The police suspected that McNeil had molested and killed his daughter, and arrested him for first-degree murder.
McNeil denied any involvement in his daughter’s death, and told the police that he had a different theory. He said that he had broken up with his girlfriend, Misook Wang, the night before, and that she had threatened to harm him and his daughter.
However, the police did not take McNeil’s theory seriously, and dismissed any evidence of an intruder. They said that they had found no signs of forced entry, and that the spider webs on the window screen were intact, indicating that no one had climbed through it. They also said that Wang’s hair on the bedding was not surprising, given that she had been in a relationship with McNeil for several months, and that it did not prove her presence on the night of the murder.
Barton McNeil Wiki | BIO
| Name | Barton McNeil |
|---|---|
| Birth date | April 5, 1959 |
| Birthplace | Peoria, Illinois |
| Occupation | Computer programmer |
| Conviction | First-degree murder of Christina McNeil |
| Sentence | 100 years in prison |
| Status | Incarcerated at Menard Correctional Center |
| Claim | Innocent; blames ex-girlfriend Misook Wang for the murder |
| Support | Illinois Innocence Project; Exoneration Project; family and friends |
| Evidence | New forensic analysis; new witness affidavits; new suspect’s confession and conviction |
The Trial and the Conviction of Barton
Barton McNeil’s trial began in February 1999, and lasted for four days. He opted for a bench trial, meaning that his fate would be decided by a judge, not a jury. The prosecution presented the autopsy report, the crime scene photos, and the testimony of several witnesses, including the pathologist, the police officers, and McNeil’s ex-wife, Tina Griffin, who had custody of Christina.
They argued that McNeil had sexually abused and suffocated his daughter, and then staged the scene to look like an intruder had done it. They said that McNeil had a history of domestic violence, drug abuse, and mental illness, and that he had killed Christina out of anger, frustration, or sexual perversion.
McNeil’s defense attorney tried to introduce Wang as an alternative suspect, but the judge barred any mention of her, ruling that there was no evidence to link her to the crime. The defense also tried to challenge the autopsy findings, and presented an expert witness who testified that Christina’s injuries could have been caused by a bacterial infection, not by sexual assault.
The defense also argued that McNeil loved his daughter, and had no reason to harm her. They said that he had cooperated with the police, and had voluntarily given them his DNA samples, his bedding, and his clothes. They said that he had acted consistently with a grieving father, and that he had never changed his story.
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The New Evidence and the Quest for a New Trial
Barton McNeil did not give up hope, and kept fighting for his freedom. He contacted several innocence organizations, and eventually got the attention of the Illinois Innocence Project, a non-profit group that works to exonerate wrongfully convicted people. The project agreed to take his case, and started to investigate his claims. They discovered new evidence that they believed could prove McNeil’s innocence, and cast doubt on the state’s case. They filed a petition for a new trial in March 2021, based on the following grounds:
The involvement of Misook Wang: The project argued that Wang had a motive, an opportunity, and a history of violence to kill Christina. They said that Wang was obsessed with money and jealous of McNeil’s relationship with his daughter and his ex-wife. They said that Wang had threatened McNeil and Christina several times, and had even admitted to hitting Christina once.
They said that Wang had lied about her alibi, and that she had access to McNeil’s apartment, as she had a spare key and knew the security code. They also said that Wang had later confessed to killing her mother-in-law, Linda Tyda, in 2011, by luring her to a remote location, strangling her, and dumping her body in a wooded area. They said that Wang’s murder conviction cast doubt on McNeil’s conviction, and that she should be considered as a viable suspect in Christina’s death.
The forensic evidence: The project argued that the forensic evidence used to convict McNeil was unreliable, outdated, and contradicted by modern science. They said that the pathologist who performed Christina’s autopsy had made several errors and assumptions, and that his opinion was not supported by the evidence. They said that Christina’s injuries were not consistent with suffocation or sexual abuse, but rather with a natural cause of death, such as sepsis or meningitis.
They said that Christina had shown symptoms of a serious infection before her death, such as fever, vomiting, and diarrhea, and that she had been treated with antibiotics. They said that the infection could have caused inflammation and bleeding in her genital and anal areas, mimicking the signs of sexual assault.
The State’s Response and the Current Status
The state, however, did not agree with the project’s claims, and filed a motion to dismiss McNeil’s petition in April 2021, arguing that Barton McNeil’s petition was untimely, meritless, and procedurally barred. The state said that McNeil had failed to meet the legal requirements for a new trial, and that his new evidence was not new, not material, and not favorable to him.
The state said that McNeil had waited too long to file his petition, and that he had not shown any cause or prejudice for his delay. The state also said that McNeil had already raised and lost some of his claims in his previous appeals, and that he was precluded from raising them again. The state also said that McNeil’s new evidence was not new, as it was either known or discoverable at the time of his trial, and that he had not exercised due diligence to obtain it.
The state asked the court to dismiss Barton McNeil’s petition without an evidentiary hearing, and to uphold his conviction and sentence. The state said that McNeil had received a fair trial, and that there was overwhelming evidence of his guilt. The state said that McNeil was the only person who had the means, the motive, and the opportunity to kill Christina, and that he was the only person who had left physical and biological evidence on her body.
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Content Source:- Wikipedia.org
