‘Making A Murderer’ Star Brendan Dassey Has Conviction Overturned

Brendan Dassey, the young subject on Netflix’s hit docu-series “Making a Murderer” may soon walk free.

On Friday, Dassey’s 2005 murder conviction of 25-year-old photographer Teresa Halbach was officially overturned by a federal judge in Milwaukee. Dassey had been convicted and sentenced to 41 years in prison on first-degree intentional homicide, second-degree sexual assault, and mutilation of a corpse, Variety reports.

Dassey was convicted alongside his uncle, Stephen Avery, in 2007. Avery is still serving a life sentence for murder and illegally owning a firearm. He was found not guilty of mutilating a corpse. He is actively appealing the ruling.

WISN, a Milwaukee local ABC affiliate reports, the state has 90 days to appeal the federal order or Dassey must be released from prison. The court additionally ruled Dassey's confession was "involuntary" based on "false promises" by interrogators, as well as "Dassey's age, intellectual deficits."

The case against both men has appeared murky from the start. Prior to his murder conviction, Avery was also accused, convicted, and exonerated for sexual assault. He was freed after new DNA technology became available. Upon his 2003 release Avery sued Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, the former district attorney and county sheriff for $36 million.

In a recent visit to the TODAY Show, “Making a Murderer” creators Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos revealed at least one juror did not believe Avery was guilty. "(The juror believed) Steven was framed by law enforcement and that he deserves a new trial, and if he receives a new trial, in their opinion it should take place far away from Wisconsin," Ricciardi said.