No Ruling in Hearing About Reinstating Conviction of Kennedy Cousin

Skakel was convicted in 2002 but was freed in 2013 after a judge granted him a new trial in the 1975 slaying of Martha Moxley.

A hearing before the Connecticut Supreme Court over whether the murder conviction against Kennedy cousin Michael Skakel that was overturned in 2013 should be reinstated has ended without a ruling.

Prosecutors appeared before the Connecticut Supreme Court today to ask them to reinstate the conviction in the 1975 murder of 15-year-old Martha Moxley.

Skakel was convicted in 2002 and sentenced to 20 years to life in prison, but he was freed in 2013 after a judge granted him a new trial in the slaying of Moxley, a Greenwich neighbor.

Skakel, who was also 15 when Moxley was killed, is a nephew of Robert F. Kennedy's widow, Ethel.

The court found, in part, that Skakel's trial lawyer failed to argue that Skakel's brother could've been responsible for the crime and failed to present a key alibi witness for Skakel

Prosecutors say Skakel's trial lawyer followed a deliberate strategy and he should not be entitled to another trial.

Hubert Santos, Skakel's attorney, told the court on Wednesday that evidence in the case points to Skakel's brother, Thomas, and Michael Skakel's trial attorney didn't do enough to pursue that possibility.

Thomas Skakel's attorney has previously said that his client had nothing to do with Martha Moxley's killing.

Skakel currently free on a $1.2 million bond while awaiting a new trial.

Michael Skakel and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. were seated in the gallery of the courtroom during the hearing.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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