Charles McCrory is Given Habeas Relief in Alleged Bite Mark Murder

A federal district judge has granted habeas relief to Charles McCrory in one of the wildest cases I’ve ever seen. Back in 1985, Charles McCrory was a 26 year-old tech worker and volunteer paramedic living in Andalusia, Alabama, about 2 hours northeast of Mobile.

At the time, Charles was separating from his wife, Julie Bonds. The two shared a son, 2 year-old Chad, and their split was said to be amicable. They were still raising their son together and sharing meals, even though Charles had moved into a small apartment down the road. 

On the night of May 30, 1985, the two had gone to couple’s therapy and spent time with their son. The next morning, May 31st, Charles’s father, C.H., went to Julia’s house at 8:25am. Upon opening the front door, he found Julia’s body lying just inside the door. On the other hand, 2 year-old Chad was alive in his bedroom. Charles was doing his EMT duty that morning, so he actually received the call about his wife’s body and arrived at the scene shortly thereafter.

According to the medical examiner, Julie had been severely beaten with five “chop” wounds to her head, 11 puncture wounds to her chest, fractures of her jaw bones, various bruises, and two small marks on the back of her upper right arm.

There was no real physical evidence connecting Charles to crime, and not much evidence at all beyond that fact that Charles had separated from Julie. But there was maybe one key piece of evidence from the crime scene: a red bandana found near Julie’s body. That bandana could be critical because a construction worker named Alton Ainsworth wore a similar looking red bandana and had been working on the home next door to Julie’s house. And, indeed, five weeks after Julie’s murder, Alton committed a similar home invasion and rape. But, somehow, the State lost this bandana, so it was never tested for forensic material.

Given the lack of forensic evidence tying Charles to the crime, and given this red bandana, the Covington County District Attorney chose not to prosecute Charles. Instead, Julie’s family hired private attorneys — Frank Tipler and his son Harvey — to prosecute the case, thinking that the local prosecutors weren’t sufficiently invested in Charles’s guilt. In case you’re wondering, yes, this situation is allowed under Alabama law. And, as a side note, Harvey has since been disbarred and convicted of solicitation of murder.

After the Tiplers took over, they sent evidence regarding those two small marks on the back of Julie’s upper right arm to celebrity forensic odontologist Dr. Richard Souviron, who had helped secure Ted Bundy’s conviction in 1979. Dr. Souviron testified that the marks on Julie’s arm had been made at or about time of her death and looked like dental impressions taken from Charles. Based largely on Dr. Souviron’s testimony, a jury convicted Charles of his wife’s murder.

During ongoing appeals, Dr. Souviron recanted his testimony, and other forensic odontologists have said that the marks on Julie’s arm were not even bitemarks. While Charles was unsuccessful in state court on his claim that this was “newly discovery evidence” warranting a new trial, a federal district judge just granted him habeas relief. I’m sure the State will appeal to the Eleventh Circuit, but, barring reversal, Charles’s conviction will be vacated.