PROVO, UTAH — A Utah judge ordered Douglas Stewart Carter to be released on bail Monday after prosecutors stated that newly analyzed DNA evidence did not match him. The ruling comes decades after Carter was sentenced to death for the 1985 murder of Eva Olesen.

Prosecutors said results of a DNA analysis received Sept. 22 exclude Carter as a possible match to blood found on a doorknob and genetic material recovered from the handle of a knife used to stab Olesen. Utah County prosecutors withdrew a notice that they intended to seek the death penalty following the review of this evidence.

Judge Derek Pullan ordered Carter to wear a GPS monitor as a condition of his release. The judge also ordered Carter to avoid contact with Olesen's family.

The victim's family objected to Carter's release on bail during the hearing. Theresa Olesen, a daughter-in-law of Eva Olesen, said during Monday's bond hearing that her family had "serious concerns" about Carter's release.

"By golly we were hoping for a concrete match," Olesen said. She added that the lack of a DNA match does not prove innocence. "It doesn't mean he wasn't there."

Olesen said Carter should remain in the Utah County jail, where he was being held pending a new trial. "We just want justice for Eva. And if he had any part of it we want that to be known," she said.

Utah County prosecutor Erwin Petilos told the judge Monday that reassessing Carter's bail was "necessary and fair" as the state continues to look at the remaining evidence in the case. Prosecutors declined to say whether they're using the DNA evidence to search for other suspects with matching DNA.

Defense attorney Neal Hamilton said Carter will be placed in an extended-stay accommodation near the family of his son. Carter's son was adopted by another family as an infant and did not learn about the conviction until years later. "It's not just as simple as, 'Let's let him go.'," Hamilton said.

Hamilton said Carter will need therapy to deal with his extended incarceration. "It's not just as simple as, 'Let's let him go,'" he said. He noted the severe impact of long-term isolation on his client.

Carter has maintained his innocence and says a signed confession was coerced. Carter said later that he had given a false confession after being repeatedly threatened by police. He told reporters in an interview last year that Carter was held for two days, along with his friend, who was arrested at the same time.

"They don't house men and women together. So Doug was literally kept with a front row seat of the consequences of his failure to confess," he said. "Doug said and has always said that the only reason he confessed was to save his friend."

No physical evidence linked Carter to the crime scene. Carter is a Black man, while Eva Olesen was White. Carter's defense attorneys have said witnesses saw a White man fleeing the crime scene.

Defense attorneys allege an investigator suppressed evidence pointing to other suspects, including the victim's husband, Orla Olesen. Defense attorneys allege that prosecutors were close to filing charges against Orla Olesen, but a Provo police lieutenant asked them not to so he could continue investigating.

Douglas Stewart Carter was added to the FBI's National DNA Index System (NDIS) in 1995, and DNA evidence from the crime scene was tested against this database twice without finding a match. He told reporters in August 2025 that the DNA evidence found at the crime scene was run against the FBI's database twice, which Carter has been a part of since 1995, and no matches were returned.

Judge Pullan had scheduled a two-month retrial for 2027. Pullan will soon decide whether that confession can be shown to any jurors at trial. Prosecutors pointed to a signed confession from Carter and a missing gun that shoots the same ammunition as a gun owned by Carter's wife, which was also not recovered.

Why It Matters

The case shows the role of the Utah Supreme Court in reviewing convictions involving constitutional violations. The court has a history of overturning convictions due to prosecutorial misconduct, including in the case of Gary Gilmore, another death row inmate whose case led to significant legal reforms in Utah. The court has a mandate to review cases involving constitutional violations, and it has historically played a key role in ensuring fair trials and protecting defendants' rights.

Eva Olesen’s family has previously filed a lawsuit against the Utah County Sheriff’s Office for mishandling evidence in the case, though no details of the suit have been made public. Members of Olesen's family had testified during a hearing last month that Carter could pose a safety risk to them if he were released.

Timeline

Douglas Stewart Carter was sentenced to death in 1985 after a jury found him guilty of murdering Eva Olesen. The jury convicted Carter based on a confession and two witnesses who said he bragged about killing Olesen. Carter was convicted and sentenced to death after a trial in which the defense called no witnesses.

Orla Olesen, a painting contractor who died in 2009, told police he found his wife dead in their home, partially undressed and with her hands tied behind her back. Eva Olesen was the aunt of the Provo police chief at the time of her killing. Eva Olesen was White.

Olesen was also shot. Carter had been living with his mother in Utah at the time of Olesen's killing on Feb. 27, 1985.

What's New

In 2025, the Utah Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s decision to grant Douglas Stewart Carter a new trial, citing 'multiple instances of intentional misconduct' by investigators and prosecutors. The Utah Supreme Court opinion in Carter v. State notes that Douglas Carter was convicted in 1985 based in no small measure on the testimony of Epifanio and Lucia Tovar.

The Utah Supreme Court found that two key witnesses against Carter were coached by prosecutors and offered incentives to lie under oath, including financial assistance and threats of deportation. Douglas Stewart Carter was held in solitary confinement for over 30 years during his incarceration, according to records obtained by his defense team in 2024.

Douglas Stewart Carter was initially sentenced to death in 1985 and later received a second death sentence in 1992 after a retrial. In 2019, the Utah Supreme Court ordered a new trial for Carter due to 'numerous constitutional violations' during his original trial and sentencing.