DNA tests lead to new trial

AKRON, Ohio (AP) - An Akron man sentenced to prison for a murder will get a new trial after test results showed his DNA didn't match evidence from the scene.

Dewey Jones was convicted in 1995 of robbing and killing 71-year-old Goodyear retiree Neal Rankin two years earlier. The 50-year-old Jones has maintained his innocence.

A Summit County judge on Monday granted a new trial, saying the lack of DNA evidence from Jones and a second suspect calls into question prosecutors' theory about what happened. They have argued both men were there when Rankin was bound with rope and killed.

Authorities tested DNA from the rope and the knife used to cut it.

Jones' 25-year-old daughter tells the Akron Beacon Journal she's excited that Jones gets a second chance at a defense in court.