The defense attorney for comic book retailer Michael George, who is accused in the cold case murder of his wife in 1990, grilled a key prosecution witness, the only person whose testimony places George at the scene of the crime (his comic book store) on the day his wife was murdered.  At a preliminary hearing for George’s second murder trial, which is slated to begin on February 8th, Attorney Carl Marlinga sought to undermine the credibility of Michael Renaud’s memory by questioning the witness about his recreational drug use.

George was convicted of first degree murder in 2008 in a case that was built almost entirely on circumstantial evidence, and which received nationwide attention due to a feature on NBC’s Dateline (see “Greed, Sex & Power” and “Retailer Gets Life in Cold Case Murder”).  But in the fall of 2008 George’s conviction was overturned by Judge James Biernat, Sr., who cited prosecutorial misconduct, and the judge’s ruling was upheld by the Michigan Supreme Court in October.  George has posted a bond and remains free pending the outcome of his second trial.

According to the Detroit Free Press, Marlinga suggested that Renaud’s use of marijuana could have affected his memory of the events surrounding the murder.  Renaud had originally told police that he phoned the store and talked to George about 6 pm on the day of the murder.  Questioned by a Free Press reporter for a book she was writing on the case, Renaud stated that he had then gone to the police when he realized that his phone call to George had taken place between 5:15 and 5:30 pm.  Marlinga pointed out that there is no police record of Renaud’s visit, though Clinton Township Police Lieutenant Craig Keith testified that just because there was no record of Renaud’s trip to the station, “doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.”