HARTFORD, Conn. — The state of Connecticut has reached a settlement with two men who were wrongly convicted in the 1985 murder of a New Milford man.
The case has also called into question the methods and conclusions of Dr. Henry Lee, the noted forensic scientist who testified in the trial of Shawn Henning and Ralph Birch.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong's office announced the agreement Tuesday evening.
The attorney general's office said they reached a settlement in principle in the lawsuits Birch v. New Milford and Henning v. New Milford. The settlement was reached with the assistance of a federal magistrate judge, and will not be final until approved by the General Assembly. That approval could happen in early 2024 when the legislature returns to session.
If approved, the settlement would provide $12.6 million each to Henning and Birch, who were incarcerated for three decades before the Connecticut Supreme Court overturned their convictions in 2019.
Attorneys for the state and plaintiffs released the following joint statement: “We are pleased to have reached an agreement in principle to resolve these matters in the best interest of all parties. We look forward to presenting this settlement to the legislature and reserve further comment until that time.”
Henning and Birch were charged in the death of Everett Carr on December 1, 1985. Carr was killed in his daughter’s home in New Milford.
When Birch and Henning were put on trial in 1989, jurors heard about an extremely bloody crime scene. Carr had been stabbed 27 times, had his throat cut, and suffered seven blows to the head.
No forensic evidence existed linking Birch and Henning to the crime. No blood was found on their clothes or in their car. The crime scene included hair and more than 40 fingerprints, but none matched the two men.
Prosecutors presented evidence from Lee — not yet famous — that it was possible for the assailants to avoid getting much blood on them.
Lee rocketed to fame after his testimony in the 1995 O.J. Simpson murder trial, in which he questioned the handling of blood evidence. He also served as a consultant in other high-profile investigations, including the 1996 slaying of 6-year-old JonBenet Ramsey in Colorado; the 2004 murder trial of Scott Peterson, who was accused of killing his pregnant wife Laci; and the 2007 murder trial of record producer Phil Spector.
Lee also testified that a towel, which later was suggested could have been touched by the killers while cleaning up, was found in a bathroom near the crime scene with stains that he tested and were consistent with blood.
Tests done after the trial, when the men were appealing their convictions, showed the substance was not blood.
After their convictions were vacated in 2020, Lee defended his conduct in the investigation.
“In my 57-year career, I have investigated over 8,000 cases and never, ever was accused of any wrongdoing or for testifying intentionally wrong,” Lee told a throng of reporters. “This is the first case that I have to defend myself.”
Lee's work in several other cases has come under scrutiny, including in the murder case against Spector, in which he was accused of taking evidence from the crime scene.
Associated Press information is included in this story.
Doug Stewart is a Senior Digital Content Producer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dstewart@fox61.com.
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