WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Lawyers respond after two men who had their convictions overturned in the 2002 murder of Nathaniel Jones in Winston-Salem last week were ordered to stay behind bars.
Jones, the grandfather of NBA star and Winston-Salem native Chris Paul, was found beaten to death in the carport of his home in November 2002.
Last week, a judge ruled that the convictions for Nathaniel Cauthen and Rayshawn Banner, as well as the other three members of the "Winston-Salem Five" who were charged in connection with the 2002 murder, had been overturned.
The judge cited coerced confessions, new DNA evidence, and a key witness's recantation as the reason for his decision to overturn the convictions.
However, Cauthen and Banner have been ordered to wait longer.
The state filed an appeal, as