HOUSTON -- The people who fought to get a man placed on death row out of prison are leveling serious charges against the retired district attorney who originally put him there.

Anthony Graves was convicted of capital murder for the 1992 slaughter of a Central Texas family. Graves spent two years behind bars awaiting trial, 12 years on death row until an appeals court threw out his conviction, and four more years locked up in county jail, awaiting a new trial that prosecutors decided they couldn’t support.

"Every single person who worked on this case said Anthony Graves is innocent. Everyone," said his attorney, renowned former Harris County Prosecutor Katherine Scardino. “I am very angry because they could have done the investigation a year ago. And in 2009 and 1994 and 1992, but nobody did any investigation in any of those times."

It was predominately the testimony of Robert Earl Carter, who was also convicted of the deaths of a Sommerville grandmother, her daughter and four other young children in 1992, that led to Grave’s conviction.

Carter later said Graves was never involved, even in his final statement moments before his execution for the murders in 2000.

Current prosecutors came to their own conclusion.

"There is no evidence. This man is not guilty," Sigler said.

Sigler was hired just to work the Graves re-trial, but her focus shifted.

"It is prosecutor's responsibility to make sure that they never fabricate evidence, or manipulate witnesses or take advantage of victims. And unfortunately what happened in this case is all of those things," she said, referring to former DA Charles Sebesta.

Sebesta still says Graves is guilty.

"She is entitled to her opinion. I'll be the first to admit that mistakes were made. They were honest mistakes that were made," he said.

The current prosecutors say the statute of limitations has run out to seek any misconduct charges against the former DA.

"He has to live with that. He has to look at himself in the mirror. I have to give that to God. I can't give him anymore of my time. More of my energy," Graves said.

http://www.khou.com/news/-DA-who-convicted-man-freed-from-death-row-Honest-mistakes-were-made-106281288.html