Missouri Supreme Court blocks release of Christopher Dunn

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (First Alert 4) - The Missouri Supreme Court has sided with the state attorney general and blocked the release of Christopher Dunn.

In an order posted around 6 p.m., the state supreme court granted a motion filed by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey earlier Wednesday seeking an emergency stay to all proceedings in the Dunn case in St. Louis Circuit Court.

“Somehow. at the last minute when my husband was 50 feet from walking out, we were told that the Missouri Supreme Court has decided to entertain the AG’s failed assertion that they have some kind of jurisdiction to disrespect and cancel and disregard a sitting judge’s order,” said Dunn’s wife Kira Dunn.

The three-page motion for a stay states the attorney general’s office was given only one-hour’s notice before a hearing Monday where Circuit Judge Jason Sengheiser vacated Dunn’s first-degree murder conviction after 33 years in prison.

“In the case below, the Circuit Court held a hearing on three motions totaling more than fifteen pages with less than one hour’s notice to the State,” Bailey states in the request. “At the conclusion of the hearing, the circuit court directed that the Warden shall release Dunn on or before 6 p.m. or be held in contempt.”

On Wednesday, Bailey also sought the intervention of the Missouri Eastern District Court of Appeals, who denied his request and ordered Dunn’s immediate release.

“Throughout the appeals process, multiple courts have affirmed Christopher Dunn’s murder conviction. We will always fight for the rule of law and to obtain justice for victims,” a spokesperson for Bailey told First Alert 4.

The Midwest Innocence Project, which is representing Dunn, told First Alert 4 that the order issued Wednesday by the state’s high court means an innocent person remains behind bars.

“Today, the Missouri Supreme Court stayed the Circuit Court’s order to release Christopher Dunn and requested additional briefing. Two courts have now found that no juror would convict Mr. Dunn after reviewing the credible evidence of his innocence. And yet, with no remaining conviction, an innocent person remains behind bars. That is not justice. We will continue to pursue every avenue to secure Mr. Dunn’s freedom,” the project said.

“All I know is that it is morally and intellectually bankrupt,” said Dunn’s lawyer Justin Bonus.

The Missouri Supreme Court has given Sengheiser until 5 p.m. Friday to file a response.

First Alert 4 reached out to the family of Ricco Rogers, the teen that Dunn was convicted of killing. We have yet to hear back.