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Dennis Dechaine's Bid for New Trial Goes to Supreme Court

By David Sharp, The Associated Press

PORTLAND, Maine — The lawyer for a Maine man convicted of killing a girl in 1988 says DNA evidence is sufficient to require a new trial, while the prosecutor is accusing the defendant of "perpetrating a fraud" with his claims of innocence.

Lawyers clashed Thursday before the state supreme court over Dennis Dechaine's latest bid for a new trial.

Dechaine is appealing a judge's conclusion that DNA evidence recovered from the victim's fingernail wouldn't have changed the trial's outcome.

Assistant Attorney General Donald Macomber said the evidence is inconclusive while there's a "mountain" of other evidence including the defendant's alleged confession.

Dechaine has maintained his innocence since he was convicted of murdering Sarah Cherry. Her body was found two days after she disappeared while baby-sitting in July 1988.