Michigan man wins appeal against burglary because his DNA was on a bottle

DETROIT – A Michigan inmate has convinced a judge to throw out his burglary conviction by overcoming numerous odds and acting as his own attorney in an appeal in a case based solely on the discovery of his DNA on a soda bottle at a beauty salon.

Gregory Tucker, 65, argued that DNA alone was not enough to convict him in connection with the 2016 break-in near Detroit, citing U.S. Supreme Court rulings on evidence.

US District Judge David Lawson also said the evidence against Tucker was thin.

“Any conclusion that (Tucker) must have left his DNA on the bottle during the break-in was purely speculative and was not supported by any positive evidence in the record,” Lawson wrote in his Aug. 1 ruling.

Anne Yantus, a lawyer who worked for the State Appellate Defender Office for 30 years and is unrelated to the case, said what Tucker accomplished was not easy.

“I'm just impressed that this is a man who had enough confidence in himself and his legal skills to represent himself in a habeas corpus petition,” Yantus said, referring to habeas corpus, the Latin term for a final appeal that ends up in federal court long after a conviction.

The plaintiff tries to argue that a guilty verdict violates various protections under federal law. Success is extremely rare.

Tucker was accused of breaking into a beauty salon in Ferndale in 2016. $10,000 worth of goods were stolen, including a television, a computer and a wall clock.

Tucker was charged after his DNA was found on a Coke bottle at the crime scene. Authorities were unable to match the other DNA on the bottle to any person.

From prison, Tucker told the Associated Press he was “overwhelmed” by Lawson's verdict, saying he had no idea why a bottle containing his DNA ended up there.

“A soda bottle has a monetary value,” Tucker said, referring to Michigan's 10-cent deposit law. “You can leave a bottle on the east side and it can end up on the west side the same day.”

His victory, however, did not mean he was released. Tucker is still in prison for another conviction and cannot leave prison until the parole board releases him.

But prosecutors are not giving up. The Michigan Attorney General's Office announced it will appeal the decision overturning Tucker's burglary conviction.

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This story has been corrected to clarify that the break-in occurred in 2016, not 2018.