KILLEEN, Texas — A Killeen man who spent more than 10 years in prison before his robbery conviction was vacated was moved back to the Bell County Jail early Monday morning. George Powell was listed back in the jail just after 10 a.m.
Powell was accused of robbing a Killeen 7-11, however, he always maintained his innocence.
Powell's case gained nationwide attention after it was discovered that a jailhouse informant lied and there was a major height discrepancy in the surveillance video. Powell is 6 feet, 3 inches, however, the robbery suspect captured on the video appeared to be 5 feet, 8 inches.
After a set of hearings with new legal representation from the Innocence Project of Texas, a legal organization that fights wrongful convictions, Powell's conviction was vacated by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals due to prosecutorial misconduct.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals denied a reconsideration of George’s Actual Innocence claim but issued a mandate for him to be sent back to Bell County Jail
Powell's attorney with the Innocence Project, Mike Ware, said he hopes to have a bond set soon for Powell as they await a new trial.
Bell County District Attorney Henry Garza issued the following statement Monday afternoon:
"The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has denied the request by defense counsel to reconsider the ruling by Judge Gauntt who denied their claims of actual innocence," the statement reads. "As such, a mandate was issued by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals that permitted Judge Gauntt to return George Powell to Bell County for retrial, in accordance with his decision. A new trial begins the process again and we start over as if a trial was not had in the first instance. Today (Monday), we wait for the Court to schedule any future settings on this case which will allow us to proceed forward with the case."
A pre-trial hearing for Powell is set for Tuesday morning.
If you'd like to help Powell and his family with transition expenses, you can on their Go Fund Me.
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