DNA Evidence Reveals Wrong Person Convicted of 2021 Flint Shooting

A woman who spent the last year and a half in prison will be exonerated after DNA evidence reveals she was wrongfully convicted for a 2021 shooting in Flint.

Flint Woman Charged With Assault With Intent to Commit Murder

Crystal Mulherin was charged with assault with the intent to murder for a shooting that took place on September 13, 2021, near Davison Road in Flint. Mulherin was also charged with a felony firearm charge.

Prosecutor David Leyton tells WJRT-TV that video from a nearby residential camera showed a person in a black hoodie riding a bike at the scene of the crime. The person riding the bicycle is seen smoking a cigarette, which is then tossed to the ground. The bicyclist is then caught on video shooting the victim.

DNA evidence from both the cigarette butt and the bike were collected, but only the cigarette butt was tested.

Mulherin's DNA did not match the DNA evidence on the cigarette butt, but jurors were told that police must have picked up the wrong cigarette butt.

Mulherin was convicted in July 2022, and sentenced to spend 15 to 30 years in prison.

DNA Evidence Review Leads to Another Shooter

Prosecutor Leyton says that a conviction integrity review was conducted. DNA evidence from the cigarette butt and the bicycle were retested and led authorities to another man who is currently being held in the Genesee County Jail on unrelated charges.

"While there are flaws in this system, I believe it is the best system in the world. I'm glad in this case it worked," Leyton said. "But, I do feel bad Ms. Mulherin was incarcerated for more than a year over this. She should not have been."

The prosecutor went on to say that Mulherin is in prison on unrelated drug charges but he expects her to be paroled soon.