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New hearing for man convicted notorious in cold-case deaths

FILE - In this Jan. 28, 2009 file photo, Jerome Barrett listens to testimony during his trial in the courtroom of Judge Steve Dozier at the A.A. Birch Building, in Nashville, Tenn. Jerome Barrett, convicted in two of Nashville’s most notorious cold cases, has won a small victory at the state Court of Criminal Appeals. Barrett will get a new hearing on claims that his attorney was ineffective in a 2009 trial that led to his conviction in the murder of Vanderbilt University student Sarah Des Prez more than 30 years before. He will also get a new hearing on a request to independently test DNA evidence. (Sanford Myers /The Tennessean via AP)
FILE - In this Jan. 28, 2009 file photo, Jerome Barrett listens to testimony during his trial in the courtroom of Judge Steve Dozier at the A.A. Birch Building, in Nashville, Tenn. Jerome Barrett, convicted in two of Nashville’s most notorious cold cases, has won a small victory at the state Court of Criminal Appeals. Barrett will get a new hearing on claims that his attorney was ineffective in a 2009 trial that led to his conviction in the murder of Vanderbilt University student Sarah Des Prez more than 30 years before. He will also get a new hearing on a request to independently test DNA evidence. (Sanford Myers /The Tennessean via AP) FILE - In this Jan. 28, 2009 file photo, Jerome Barrett listens to testimony during his trial in the courtroom of Judge Steve Dozier at the A.A. Birch Building, in Nashville, Tenn. Jerome Barrett, convicted in two of Nashville’s most notorious cold cases, has won a small victory at the state Court of Criminal Appeals. Barrett will get a new hearing on claims that his attorney was ineffective in a 2009 trial that led to his conviction in the murder of Vanderbilt University student Sarah Des Prez more than 30 years before. He will also get a new hearing on a request to independently test DNA evidence. (Sanford Myers /The Tennessean via AP)

By Associated Press 2 min read

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – A man convicted in two of Nashville’s most notorious cold cases has won a small victory at the state Court of Criminal Appeals.

Jerome Barrett will get a new hearing on claims that his attorney was ineffective in a 2009 trial that led to his conviction in the murder of Vanderbilt University student Sarah Des Prez more than 30 years before. Barrett will also get a new hearing on a request to independently test DNA evidence.

The Appeals Court on Monday sent the issues back to a lower court judge who ruled against Barrett on those claims after a 2015 hearing. The Appeals Court found the judge improperly denied Barrett’s request to either postpone the hearing or let him act as his own attorney.

Barrett is serving a life sentence for the murder of 19-year-old Des Prez in 1975 and a 44-year sentence for the murder of 9-year-old Marcia Trimble, a Girl Scout who disappeared while delivering cookies that same year.

According to the Monday ruling, after Barrett’s ordinary appeals were denied in the Des Prez case, he petitioned the courts for relief based on several claims, including that his trial attorney was ineffective.