What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? TEXAS
A person I know (this is definitely NOT me) was arrested, tried and convicted of murder. He contests that conviction and claims innocence, as he has. His claims have some merit (more than "it wasn't me"). During the trial and in an appeal he accused another person of the murder, who closely matched the description of the killer, unlike the person convicted. That person never denied it or made any statement and in fact was at the scene at the time of the crime. Apparently there were newspaper articles at the time which printed that accusation and it is on line where the appeal was published. Now the man in prison wrote an autobiography and in it he talks about the killing, repeating in some detail his view of the crime which again implicates this other person. NOW I know anyone can sue anyone else for anything. May not be successful but they can. Is it likely that the person in prison could be successfully sued for defamation? The other person was definitely there at the time of the crime.
In other words, he is maintaining his theory of the crime which he did on the witness stand. He is not alone in that accusation. He is trying to free himself.
A person I know (this is definitely NOT me) was arrested, tried and convicted of murder. He contests that conviction and claims innocence, as he has. His claims have some merit (more than "it wasn't me"). During the trial and in an appeal he accused another person of the murder, who closely matched the description of the killer, unlike the person convicted. That person never denied it or made any statement and in fact was at the scene at the time of the crime. Apparently there were newspaper articles at the time which printed that accusation and it is on line where the appeal was published. Now the man in prison wrote an autobiography and in it he talks about the killing, repeating in some detail his view of the crime which again implicates this other person. NOW I know anyone can sue anyone else for anything. May not be successful but they can. Is it likely that the person in prison could be successfully sued for defamation? The other person was definitely there at the time of the crime.
In other words, he is maintaining his theory of the crime which he did on the witness stand. He is not alone in that accusation. He is trying to free himself.