ORLANDO, Fla. – Modern DNA testing and forensic reanalysis have cast new doubt on the evidence used to convict Tommy Zeigler in 1976 of four murders that occurred on Christmas Eve 1975, his attorneys said, a development they contend could provide a chance at freedom for the now-80-year-old inmate if the results are deemed authentic and legally relevant.
Zeigler was convicted of killing his wife, his in-laws and another man at his family’s furniture store in Winter Garden. According to Ziegler’s attorneys, prosecutors relied heavily on forensic assertions that bloodstains on Zeigler’s clothing came from his family members and on a theory that he fired the shots at close range.
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Zeigler has long maintained he was a victim — saying he walked in on a robbery and was shot while struggling with the real killer.
According to defense attorneys, comprehensive modern analysis of the physical evidence produced three principal findings: no blood from Zeigler’s family members was found on his clothing except for a trace on one shoe; no gunshot residue or back spatter was detected on Zeigler, contrary to the State’s close-range shooting theory; and blood and DNA evidence point to another individual who was present at the crime scene.
A senior forensic scientist at the Forensic Analytical Crime Lab, who was asked about her testing of several blood samples, said she collected four samples from Zeigler’s left shoe and that they tested positive for the presence of blood from different people.
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Kristen Harty-Connell said, “There was evidence of Charles Mays being a contributor as well as Perry Edwards being a contributor,” the scientist said.
The state, however, questioned how accurate the testing was among other concerns.
The developments come as Zeigler faces the possibility of final judicial review. Circuit Court Judge Leticia Marques is slated to decide whether to uphold Zeigler’s death sentence or to overturn his convictions in light of the new findings.
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