South Bay Murder Suspect Freed From Jail After Prosecutors Delay Trial
In a recent and dramatic turn to one of Northern California’s most intriguing murder mysteries, a Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge ordered the release of a jailed murder suspect because prosecutors were taking too long to bring him to trial, according to a news article in the San Jose Mercury News.
In this high-profile, no-body case, Maurice Nasmeh, a 43-year-old architect had been held for 2 1/2 years in Santa Clara County jail having been charged in connection with the disappearance of Jeanine Harms. Prosecutors accused Nasmeh, who was on a date with the 42-year-old Harms on the day of her disappearance, of killing the woman and getting rid of her dead body. The body is believed to have been wrapped in – what has become a piece of key evidence - the rug from Harms’ living room. Prosecutors also say Nasmeh was the last person to see Harms alive on the night of July 27, 2001. Her body has not been found.
During a hearing Wednesday, Nasmeh’s attorney, pursuing his client’s right to a speedy trial, asked the court to start the trial in 60 days. Superior Court Judge Ray Cunningham made his decision to throw out the case on learning that the prosecutors needed at least a year to retest “key fiber evidence.” The news report quotes Nasmeh’s attorney as calling this a “lose-lose situation” despite his client’s release from jail, and that neither the victim’s family nor his client got the closure they needed. He said Nasmeh lost his job, his house and family after he was charged with Harms’ murder.
The important break in the case came four years ago when the rug that had been missing until then, showed up in a local dumpster. Nasmeh’s attorney maintains that his own tests have shown the fibers found in Nasmeh’s SUV and being used in the defense’s case are the common kind similar to those found in most car rugs and not linked to the rug from Harms’ house.
We believe that the judge did the right thing. He did what he was required to do by law. As former prosecutors and former police detectives, our attorneys and investigators know exactly how police departments and the district attorney’s office build their homicide and assault cases. Our prior experience helps us spot weaknesses in the evidence right away to help get an acquittal for our clients. If you have been accused or arrested on suspicion of a murder or a violent crime, call us for a consultation. And remember, you are innocent until proven guilty.
