Judge Overturns Child Molestation Conviction

A federal judge threw out a decades-old child molestation conviction, citing a botched investigation and faulty interviewing, and criticized local authorities for fighting the defendant’s appeal for so long.

Howard Lee Weimer was a foster parent when he was convicted in 1985 of 11 counts of child molestation involving two teenage girls.

U.S. District Judge Oliver Wanger wrote that Weimer’s due process rights were violated because investigators used unreliable witnesses, prosecutors were overly harsh and the defense attorneys were ineffective.

“What is most troubling about this case is the zeal with which both the Kern County district attorney’s office ... and the California attorney general’s office ... have endeavored at all costs to sustain Mr. Weimer’s convictions,” the opinion said.