Jersey Proud: 2 brothers exonerated for murder, thanks to students at Ramapo College
The Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center at Ramapo College gives cold cases a second look.
Two brothers were released from prison this week after serving 25 years for a murder they didn’t commit. They were exonerated, thanks to the efforts of Ramapo College.
David and Robert Bintz were convicted in 2000 of a 1987 murder. There was no physical evidence, but they were found guilty because a cellmate told police he heard David Bintz admit to the murder as he talked in his sleep. On the strength of that, the brothers each got a life sentence.
The Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center at Ramapo College gives cold cases a second look. It took six students only two days to develop a new lead. Genetic evidence didn't match the Bintz brothers but rather someone who died years ago. They exhumed the body, did a test, and last week the state of Wisconsin confirmed that person was the real killer.
The brothers are now free, thanks to these six students.
The students are currently looking at 53 other cases.
