Michael Green was arrested on February 11, 2020 and charged in the July 7, 1985 homicide of 54-year-old Jane Hylton in El Dorado Hills, California. Hylton, a well-known newspaper columnist, was stabbed to death in her home. She lived with her 13-year-old teenage daughter, a man named Ricky Davis, and Connie Dahl, who was then Davis’ girlfriend.
The case was reopened in 1999, and a DNA profile was obtained from under Hylton’s fingernails, as well as from saliva found in the area of a bite mark on her nightgown.
Ricky Davis was convicted of the murder in 2005, and he served almost 15 years of a 16-year-to-life sentence for second degree murder. He was convicted despite the fact that his DNA did not match the profile developed from Hylton’s remains. His conviction had been based on the testimony of Connie Dahl, who stated that she helped Davis commit the murder.
Davis had been granted a re-trial, and he was being held in custody. He was only freed when Green was identified as the suspect who matches the crime scene DNA profile. Davis was exonerated with the assistance of the Northern California Innocence Project.
Green was 17 years old at the time of the murder. The case against him is pending in El Dorado County Superior Court.
Green plead no contest to second degree murder, and on October 27, 2022, he was sentenced to 15 years to life.
Sources:
Associated Press, and ABC News. “DNA Evidence Exonerates Wrongly Convicted California Man Who Spent 14 Years in Jail for Murder.” ABC News, February 13, 2020. Accessed December 21, 2020. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-14/dna-evidence-frees-ricky-davis-wrongful-murder-conviction/11967232?fbclid=IwAR1pMDwzHpHcdRgWlwxv9iVWpV4cwPx1YSXNqwGiJ7qsVMIsgTFafSC8YJc.
CBS News. “Genealogy May Exonerate California Man Convicted of 1985 Murder.” CBS News, February 13, 2020. Accessed December 21, 2020. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jane-hylton-murder-genealogy-may-exonerate-california-man-ricky-davis-convicted-of-1985-killing/.
Gonzalez, Vicki. “Who is the New Suspect in 1985 El Dorado Hills Murder?” KCRA 3 NBC News, February 13, 2020. Accessed December 21, 2020. https://www.kcra.com/article/who-is-the-new-suspect-in-1985-el-dorado-hills-murder/30919518.
Kalmbacher, Colin. “Awful Mistakes Were Made’: Cold Case Murder of California Newspaper Columnist Solved Decades after Detectives Lied During Interrogation, Convicted the Wrong Man.” Law & Crime, September 29, 2022. Accessed January 13, 2023. https://lawandcrime.com/crime/awful-mistakes-were-made-cold-case-murder-of-california-newspaper-columnist-solved-decades-after-detectives-lied-during-interrogation-convicted-the-wrong-man/.
Lakey, Pat. “Man Who Didn’t Commit Murder Seeks $18 Million.” Village Life, August 16, 2020. Accessed December 21, 2020. https://www.villagelife.com/news/man-who-didnt-commit-murder-seeks-18-million/.
Sullivan, Bill. “EDH Murder Suspect Appears in Court.” Gold Country Media, February 26, 2020. Accessed December 21, 2020. https://goldcountrymedia.com/news/162950/edh-murder-suspect-appears-in-court/.