Missouri Supreme Court denies Ferguson appeal
Ferguson will appeal after denial by Missouri Supreme Court.
Aug. 24, 2007
The Missouri Supreme Court on Thursday refused to hear an appeal from Ryan Ferguson, who was convicted of second-degree murder in 2005.
His father, Bill Ferguson, called it "a step forward" and said this allows the family to pursue a different kind of trial, which would allow the submission of new evidence to the court.
Bill Ferguson said the next step for his son would be to appeal to the Boone County Court, where he will then be able to argue that his constitutional rights were violated.
Ryan Ferguson, 22, was convicted of the 2001 homicide of Columbia Daily Tribune editor Kent Heitholt.
Heitholt's body was found outside the Tribune's office on Nov. 1, 2001.
He had been beaten and strangled.
Bill Ferguson said the family would appeal on the grounds that the attorney in the original trial, Charlie Rogers, was ineffective.
"This is insignificant, a formality," Bill Ferguson said.
The murder was unsolved for two years until Charles Erickson told police that he and Ryan Ferguson committed the crime.
Ryan Ferguson pleaded not guilty and was sentenced to 40 years in prison.
Erickson pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 25 years.
Ryan Ferguson and his family have maintained his innocence since Erickson's first confession.
"We'd rather be presenting new evidence," Bill Ferguson said.
Earlier this year, the Ferguson family released a video on YouTube.com called "Have you ever had the cops in your face?"
The video contains footage of police interrogation of Erickson.
Bill Ferguson told The Maneater in May that the video was intended to raise questions about the validity of Erickson's confession.
The Ferguson trial was also the subject of an episode of CBS's "48 Hours" entitled, "Dream Killer."
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