The courtroom grew extremely silent as the verdict was handed out. The room moved to the edge of their seats to hear the awaiting verdict, the next words that came from the judge were, “We the jury find the defendant guilty of first-degree intentional homicide, in addition to possession of a firearm”. The friends and family of the defendant were distressed as the just convicted defendant was hauled off in shackles and chains to begin his new life of confinement for a crime he says he did not commit. This is Steven Avery’s life story.
Steven Avery was born in Northeastern Wisconsin. His family operated a salvage yard on the property where he lived with his parents Allan and Dolores Avery and his three siblings. Growing up, Steven had numerous encounters with the law. At the age of 18, Avery was charged and sentenced to six years for endangering the safety of another person after assaulting his cousin after he ran her off the road at gunpoint.. Avery claimed, the gun was not loaded, and he was trying to stop her from spreading rumors about him. In 1982, Avery met Lori Mathiesen and they married that year. They had four children: Rachel, Jenny, and twins Steven and Will.
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Throughout the trial Steven claimed he had nothing to do with the assault, however, he was still found guilty. In 2002, the Wisconsin Innocence Project took Avery's case. As a result of improvements in DNA testing, they were able to exonerate Avery in 2003 based on DNA evidence indicating that someone other than Avery committed the crime.The DNA was matched to one Gregory Allen. In 2003, after spending 18 years in prison, Avery was found not guilty of a sexual assault he’d long stated he didn’t commit. He maintained his innocence and was able to return to his