After nearly 25 years behind bars, two brothers from Wisconsin have been cleared of their convictions, thanks to advancements in genetic genealogy.
In the year 2000, David Bintz, aged 69, along with his brother Robert Bintz, who was 68, both hailing from Green Bay, faced conviction for the murder of Sandra Lison that occurred in 1987.
In early August 1987, Lison, a 44-year-old mother of two, disappeared from her position as a bartender at Good Times in Green Bay, according to reports from the Green Bay Press-Gazette.
Her remains were discovered soon after in the Machickanee Forest located in Oconto County, approximately 30 miles away.
An autopsy revealed that she had been strangled, according to a report from a local outlet. Officials revealed that they discovered indications of sexual assault prior to her death, according to the report.
The brothers were interrogated by the police regarding their presence at the bar that evening. David reportedly had a dispute with Lison regarding the bill, according to Fox 11.
For years, the investigation stalled and the case went cold.
In 1998, while David was incarcerated for a different offense, his cellmate informed the authorities that David had allegedly confessed in his sleep to the murder of Lison, according to reports from WFRV.
Prosecutors claimed that the brothers had robbed Lison prior to her murder, even though there was no physical evidence connecting them to the crime, according to WFVR.
In the year 2000, both individuals received life sentences in prison.
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In 2018, a significant turn of events occurred as the Great North Innocence Project of Minnesota took an interest in the case.
After local genealogists struggled to uncover any connections between the brothers and the murder, Jim Mayer, the legal director of the project, sought assistance from the Investigate Genetic Genealogy Center at Ramapo College in New Jersey, according to Fox 11.
In 2023, investigators from IGG created a genetic profile from the DNA discovered at the crime scene and submitted it to consumer databases like GEDmatch, according to Fox 11.
With that information in hand, they initiated a search for any relatives that could potentially match the DNA sample.
IGG has identified three siblings hailing from Green Bay as potential matches. Among those siblings was William Hendricks, a convicted rapist who passed away in 2000.
In April, the IGG secured a DNA sample from his disinterned remains, revealing an astonishing one in 329 trillion probability that it could belong to anyone other than Hendricks, according to Fox 11.
A judge has approved a motion to release the two brothers, according to NBC 26, on Wednesday, Sept. 27.
“It is therefore my bounded duty to exercise and follow the law, well satisfied that I will sign judgments vacating the convictions in both of these for both of these defendants and save them free.”
“It is my solemn responsibility to uphold the law, and I am fully prepared to sign judgments that will overturn the convictions for both defendants, ensuring their freedom.”
When questioned about the brothers receiving life sentences without physical evidence, District Attorney David Lasee responded to NBC 26, stating, “The prosecutors and the law enforcement officers were handling this case at the outset, followed the evidence that they had at that time, and that conviction was sound.”
