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Man freed from prison after 23 years fails drug test

ROCKFORD, Ill. (AP) - An Illinois man released from prison after 23 years and is awaiting a decision on whether he'll stand trial again for murder is in jail after he allegedly tried o sidestep a drug test.

The (Rockford) Register Star reports that Patrick Pursley allegedly tried to pour urine from a bag inside his pants into a cup for testing rather than urinate. He ultimately tested positive for drugs. A hearing is scheduled for next week.

Pursley was convicted of murder in Rockford in 1994. Last year, he was released from prison after a judge granted him a new trial amid questions about the accuracy of ballistics tests and a more recent test that failed to definitively link shell found at the crime scene to his gun. Prosecutors have appealed the ruling.

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