Wolfe Appeal Granted, Conviction Vacated

Justin Michael Wolfe’s conviction and death sentence related to the 2001 murder of Daniel Robert Petrole Jr. has been vacated. The decision comes in response to a hearing last fall in which the triggerman in the case, Owen M. Barber IV 

The court found: “Wolfe was denied the right to due process pursuant to the Fourteenth Amendment as interpreted in Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963), to be apprised of all material, exculpatory information within the hands of the prosecution.” 

Wolfe’s attorneys had that could have cleared Wolfe prior to his trial in January 2001.

A Prince William County jury convicted and sentenced Wolfe for ordering the killing of Daniel Robert Petrole Jr. in 2002. Wolfe was  sentenced to death and Barber's testimony was the only direct evidence that Wolfe was involved in the murder.

During Wolfe's 2002 trial, Barber described a roughly one-hour pursuit of Petrole from an apartment complex in Centreville to a house in Fairfax City and then out to Gainesville and south to Bristow.

Some jurors signed affidavits saying they felt cajoled into finding Wolfe guilty.

More to come.