DNA test clears inmate, spurs new arrest in killing

HOUSTON — Authorities said they will start the process to exonerate a Houston man who was convicted in a 2010 fatal stabbing that investigators now think was committed by someone else.

Lydell Grant, 42, was freed on bond last month after a new analysis of DNA found on the victim’s fingernails pointed to his innocence in the killing of 28-year-old Aaron Scheerhoorn. Authorities undertook a new investigation, and the Harris County district attorney’s office said Friday that Grant has been eliminated as a suspect and another person has been arrested in Scheerhoorn’s slaying.

“We are relieved that Lydell’s wrongful conviction has had this important breakthrough. We look forward to his full exoneration at the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals,” said Mike Ware, who is the executive director of the Innocence Project of Texas and one of Grant’s attorneys.

Grant has served seven years of a life sentence.

Authorities now suspect 41-yearold Jermarico Carter is the killer.

Houston police detectives learned Carter had been near the club where Scheerhoorn sought help after being stabbed. Police say Scheerhoorn was turned away from the club, and witnesses at the time told investigators they saw Grant stab him several more times before fleeing. Grant was convicted in 2012.

Police tracked down Carter in Georgia, where he was arrested Thursday.

Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said Carter has admitted to killing Scheerhoorn.

The fingernail evidence was retested with more advanced technology than had been available during the initial investigation. The retesting resulted in a hit on the FBI’s Combined DNA Index System that pointed to Carter.