GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — A judge has granted bond to Danyel Smith, clearing the way for the Gwinnett County father to leave prison after more than 23 years behind bars.
The Georgia Supreme Court in 2025 instructed the trial court to apply a correct legal framework when reviewing Smith’s extraordinary motion for a new trial.
A Gwinnett County Superior Court judge granted the motion for a new trial in July.
He has been imprisoned since 2002 for the death of his two-month-old son, Chandler. Prosecutors argued Smith violently shook the infant, but his attorneys now say evolving medical science proves their client is innocent.
A jury convicted him in 2003.
His attorneys said the baby likely died from childbirth complications, not shaken baby syndrome.
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