Cold case murder charge against Fort Wayne man dropped

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) - Prosecutors have dropped a murder charge against a Fort Wayne man whose trial in a 1993 slaying ending in a mistrial when jurors could not agree on a verdict.

Fifty-six-year-old Richard Niemeyer was released from jail Tuesday, 13 months after being arrested for the beating death of Kevin Weisenburger.

Niemeyer says he's home where he's "supposed to be."

The case was reopened after a cigarette butt and a towel came back with DNA matches to Niemeyer, whose DNA was in a national database.

Before the July mistrial, Niemeyer's attorney questioned the accuracy of the DNA testing and argued it wasn't enough to convict a man of murder. Niemeyer and his family have been adamant that he's innocent.

The charges were dropped without prejudice, which means prosecutors could refile charges later.