Durham man released on bond amid questions of SBI lab work

Durham -- A Durham man who has been behind bars since 1998 walked free amid questions about evidence in his case that includes the work of the SBI.

Superior Court Judge Orlando Hudson ordered the release of Derrick M. Allen, 31, after a 30-minute hearing in Durham. He is released on an unsecured bond. He is awaiting a new trial, which has not been set.

Allen was arrested in 1998 on charges of murder and a sexual assault of a two-year-old child. He had always said he was innocent, but, facing the death penalty, he entered an Alford guilty plea, which means he acknowledged there was enough evidence to convict him without admitting guilt in 1999. He immediately began fighting for a new trial and was successful last year.

Then, last month, his case was one of about 200 in which an outside audit raised questions about the SBI blood work. In his case, a key piece of evidence was what prosecutors called bloody undergarments related to the sex assault. But documents show the SBI's tests on those undergarments were negative for blood.

In court, Hudson acknowledged agency problems in the case. "Everyone in the state's justice system is reevaluating," Hudson said."I think we need to get this case over with. We need to take steps to resolve this."

A separate issue in the Allen case involves materials that prosecutors have that should have been turned over to his defense team.

Prosecutors said they offered a plea deal for Allen that would drop the sex assault charge in exchange for a plea for second-degree murder. Prosecutor Mitchell Garrell said if the deal is not accepted, they believe they can go forward with the sex assault charge with testimony of a doctor, a nurse and a medical examiner, who documented a laceration to the child's vagina.

Prosecutors wanted a bond tipped at $250,000 for Allen. His lawyer said Allen's family couldn't afford that and argued for a much lower threshold that would free Allen immediately. The judge agreed.