ST. LOUIS – A Missouri appeals court has ordered a new trial for a man sentenced to three decades in prison for infecting another man with HIV and endangering four others with the disease while attending college.
A Missouri Court of Appeals panel sided Tuesday with Michael L. Johnson's claim that the St. Charles County trial court abused its discretion by admitting excerpted recordings of phone calls Johnson made while jailed. Those recordings weren't disclosed to Johnson's attorneys until the morning of the first day of trial.
Johnson, a former Lindenwood University student and wrestler, was convicted last year of recklessly infecting another with HIV and lesser counts alleging he exposed or tried to expose others.
Prosecutors argued Johnson knew he was HIV positive and lied to sexual partners.
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