DECATUR, Ala. — The Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals on Friday reversed the conviction and death sentence of Jason Michael Osborn in a 2018 Decatur fatality, finding a prosecutor’s closing remark during trial violated Osborn’s constitutional rights and warrants returning the case to Morgan County Circuit Court.
The appeals court said the prosecutor’s comment during closing — which suggested only two people knew what happened, one of whom was dead — amounted to an improper comment on Osborn’s decision not to testify, and the trial judge’s failure to give a curative instruction rendered the error harmful enough to require reversal, the opinion states.
Osborn, who was convicted in February 2023 and sentenced to death after a jury recommended capital punishment by a 10-2 vote, has been held at Holman Correctional Facility; the appeals court did not set a new trial date and the case was returned to the Morgan County Circuit Court for further proceedings, court documents and reporting show.
Morgan County prosecutors have indicated they disagree with the appeals court’s decision and may pursue further action in the state courts, according to local reporting. The appeals opinion contains the court’s legal analysis but does not include newly reported eyewitness accounts or additional factual findings beyond those reviewed on appeal.
No new sentencing or trial date has been announced.