2019

December 11, 2019

The law firm of Turner, Sweeny, and Seton responds to Byron's complaint regarding Amy McGowan, the former assistant prosecutor who engineered Byron's conviction (and the wrongful convictions of other innocent people). In the response's conclusion, attorney John E. Turner acknowledges that the court found Ms. McGowan's actions contrary to court rules and rules of professional conduct, but says that she maintains she did nothing wrong.

November 19, 2019

Byron files a complaint against former Jackson County, Missouri, assistant prosecutor Amy McGowan (File #19-1578), based on her failure to disclose exculpatory evidence in his and other victims' cases. Those other people include the recently exonerated Ricky Kidd and the previously exonerated Richard Buchli. In determining that Mr. Kidd's conviction was wrongful, the court cited McGowan's failure to inform the defense of multiple key facts regarding witnesses and even alternative suspects in Kidd's case. In the Buchli case, McGowan entered as evidence an edited version of a surveillance video, effectively framing Mr. Buchli for murder. In Byron's case, she seems to have done both. Click here to read the acknowledgement letter from the Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel.

April 19, 2019

An attorney from a Kansas City law firm visits ERDCC and signs an agreement to represent Byron in his exoneration efforts. For strategic legal reasons, information about the arrangement is being kept private for now, but Byron feels good about his new lawyers and calls this development "really encouraging."