A Maricopa County Superior Court judge has overturned a conviction in a first-degree murder case because information about the lead homicide detective’s history of misconduct was kept secret from the defense.
In his order, Judge Kevin Wein wrote the case would have changed if the defendant knew about Det. Jennifer DiPonzio’s history of mishandling evidence and other misconduct .
“The fact remains that the case agent in this matter engaged in misconduct and lied about it in an interview with defense counsel in this case,” according to Wein’s ruling.
The defendant, Randall Barnes, was indicted with First-Degree murder in late 2018.
Three years, later he accepted a plea deal for manslaughter.
In court, his attorneys have argued that he took the deal because he otherwise could have faced life in prison.
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Barnes filed for post-conviction relief in 2023 – a decision coming after ABC15 exposed that DiPonzio had a history of repeated misconduct that had not been disclosed in dozens of cases .