Freed daycare owners accused of Satanic rituals still fighting to be totally exonerated

Associated Press/December 1, 2014

By Mia De Graaf

Day care owners who spent 21 years in prison before being freed amid questions over their convictions for child abuse involving satanic rituals are struggling to convince prosecutors that they should be fully exonerated.

Dan and Fran Keller, who divorced in prison, were freed on bond last year when the only physical evidence against them was found to be a mistake.
But prosecutors say to overcome a jury finding of guilt, the courts require new evidence that unquestionably establishes innocence such as an ironclad alibi or DNA proof.

The couple had been convicted in 1992 after therapists testified that they helped three children recover memories of satanic rituals and sexual abuse at an Austin preschool the Kellers operated.

However, an appeal found the only physical evidence came from an emergency room doctor who testified that internal lacerations on one child were evidence of abuse.
And children whose testimony led to a conviction have since claimed they were pressured to lie.

The Kellers, who always denied the charges, want the courts to throw out their convictions.

But a year after they were freed from prison, Travis County prosecutors remain unwilling to proclaim them innocent, the Austin American-Statesman reported Sunday.

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