A Boulder County judge on Friday vacated the conviction in a 1994 murder case because of flawed DNA testing by disgraced Colorado Bureau of Investigation scientist Yvonne “Missy” Woods. It’s the first case to be thrown out since the CBI in 2023 discovered hundreds of cases where Woods cut corn ers in her DNA testing, then covered up her shortcuts by altering, deleting or omitting data from lab work. District Court Judge Nancy Woodruff Salomone vacated the first-degree murder conviction of 49-year-old Michael Clark, who was serving life without parole for the 1994 shooting death of Boulder city employee Marty Grisham. A hearing is scheduled for June 6 at which the DA’s office is expected to announce whether or not it will retry Clark on the murder charges. “This is a really good day,” said Adam Frank, Clark’s attorney. “Michael Clark’s conviction is gone.” Boulder County District Attorney Michael Dougherty filed a motion late Friday asking the judge to vacate Clark’s conviction because Woods’ interpretation of DNA tests is in question after an independent lab re-tested crime scene evidence. “Based on those results, as well as the significant claims of juror misconduct and ineffective assistance of counsel, our office determined that the conviction must be vacated,” Doughtery said in a statement. “It is the right thing to do, after considering all three issues. In light of the charges in this case, we will carefully and thoroughly analyze all the evidence to determine the right and just outcome.” The motion said a juror ignored the judge’s instructions and visited the crime scene during the trial. Clark, 49, is expected to be released Monday from the Fremont Correctional Facility, where he has been serving life without parole since his 2012 conviction. He is married and has three children. “We want to get him home to them as soon as humanly possible,” Frank said. Clark was always a suspect in the 1994 killing but investigators only had circumstantial evidence. It was Woods’ DNA testing of a Carmex container found at the scene that led investigators to finally charge him in the cold case in 2012. Doughtery’s motion to vacate said the independent lab retested Woods’ original analysis and created a new sample from the Carmex container. It was that new sample that found different results that could statistically exclude Clark. “There could be a number of reasons for these results, including the advances in DNA technology,” the motion stated. “Regardless of the reason, this is new evidence.” Grisham, who worked as the city of Boulder’s information services director, was shot four times on the night of Nov. 1, 1994, when he answered a knock at his apartment door. The killer fled before Grisham’s girlfriend could see him. Related Articles Former Colorado Bureau of Investigation scientist under investigation for “anomalies” in DNA testing Inside the investigation of a CBI scientist’s years of misconduct: “God forbid we have someone in prison that shouldn’t be” Missy Woods, DNA analyst at center of CBI scandal, charged with 102 felonies New DNA testing in 1994 Boulder murder supports innocence claim, defense attorney says The killing was a cold case for nearly two decades before Boulder police reopened it in 2009. In 2011, Woods took DNA samples from the Carmex lip balm container and determined they excluded 99.4% of the world’s male population, but could include Clark. Clark was charged with first-degree murder and convicted by a jury in 2012. Clark already had brought up the DNA testing in an appeal of his murder conviction, saying his defense lawyer never hired another DNA expert to challenge Woods’ conclusions. Then the CBI discovered in 2023 that Woods had mishandled hundreds of DNA samples by cutting corners and skipping protocols that are in place to ensure accurate results. She was charged in January with 102 felonies. The case is pending. Her shoddy work has rattled Colorado’s justice system. While Clark becomes the first person to successfully challenge a conviction, others are expected to follow. The fallout also is costing the state millions as the CBI retests DNA samples and district attorney’s offices are being asked to compensate those who were wrongly convicted. Sign up to get crime news sent straight to your inbox each day. ...read more read less