Tennessee man set to be executed files motion claiming DNA evidence will prove his innocence

Key Points:

• In 1994, Marcellos Anderson, his mother Delois, and Frederick Tucker were found murdered and buried in Memphis; Tony Carruthers and James Montgomery were convicted and sentenced to death for the crime, while Jonathan Montgomery died before trial.
• The ACLU filed a motion for post-conviction DNA testing, highlighting that key DNA evidence from the crime scene does not match Carruthers and that fingerprints found at the scene excluded both Carruthers and Montgomery, with several prints remaining unidentified.
• Carruthers represented himself at trial under problematic circumstances, and the case against him relied heavily on jailhouse informant testimony; his defense attorneys argue he was mentally ill and incompetent during trial.
• James Montgomery, later released, implicated another suspect, Ronnie "Eyeball" Irving, who was not tested against the unidentified DNA and fingerprints; Irving died in 2002, and his DNA and fingerprints are on file but have not been compared to the evidence.
• Despite the ACLU's motion and Carruthers' request for fingerprint testing, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals recently denied further fingerprint analysis, stating there is no reasonable probability that the testing would affect the conviction or prosecution.