A man who was convicted in the child abuse death of his girlfriend's son, has been granted a new trial.
Paul Jerome Johnson was found guilty in July 2010 of felony murder in the death of 19-month-old Joseph Manning. He was sentenced to life in prison, with the possibility of parole.
Johnson was convicted in the courtroom of disgraced former judge Richard Baumgartner, whose cases are being overturned because of his admission of years of drug abuse while he was on the bench.
On Tuesday, Johnson and his attorney, Don Bosch appeared in court to ask for a new trial. The prosecution tried to make an issue of the fact that Bosch defended Baumgartner, but Bosch said he was hired after the trial, and that the Baumgartner case is closed.
Judge Jon Kerry Blackwood granted Johnson a new trial, based on the fact that Baumgartner's condition kept him from acting as a 13th juror during the trial.
The new trial is set to begin November 5.