Douglas Carter released on bail after 41 years behind bars

PROVO — Douglas Carter has been behind bars for 41 years, with much of that time spent on death row. But Monday, he walked out of the Utah County Jail after a renewed request for bail was granted.

Fourth District Judge Derek Pullan said in an order around 5 p.m. on Monday that he could not find that Carter would be a danger to the victim's family, and with the death penalty dropped by prosecutors, his incentive to flee has been reduced. Just a few hours later, Carter's imprisonment was over.

Carter's attorney, Neal Hamilton, said in a statement that his client was arrested 15,085 days ago.

"We are profoundly grateful to see Doug finally go home, but we are also heartbroken by the theft of his life. When Doug was arrested, he was a bright young man standing on the cusp of his future. He leaves custody a 71-year-old man hoping to enjoy what remains of the twilight years of his life," the attorney said.

He is calling for prosecutors to dismiss the case and help Carter rebuild his life by stipulating to a finding of innocence and conducting an investigation into his prosecution.

The Ruling

In Monday's ruling, Pullan said there is still enough evidence that Carter committed the crime for a reasonable jury to find him guilty — citing that it is a jury not a judge that should determine the credibility of that evidence even with evidence of misconduct and perjury. However, he said the DNA report excluding Carter as a contributor to multiple samples from the crime scene "does much to erode" the evidence he relied on to deny bail earlier in September.

He ordered that Carter use a GPS monitor, find employment, not contact any members of the victim's family directly or through family members, maintain an 11:00 p.m. curfew and work with a reentry program while he is on bail.

Carter is charged with murder in the first degree, a capital offense, and based on 1985 law, his sentence for that — with the death penalty off the table — would be life in prison with the possibility of parole, if convicted.

The judge said he has already served 40 years in prison without any disciplinary issues, and even if found guilty, a life sentence "would be unlikely" to lead to more than 40 years in prison.

Pullan said because he's likely served the sentence for the crime he's accused of, his incentive to flee is now "substantially reduced."

Case History

Last Wednesday, prosecutors announced they would not be seeking the death penalty in his next trial on the same charge, aggravated murder, a first-degree felony. The state also asked the judge to consider releasing him ahead of his trial.

This change in stance came after a DNA report excluded Carter from multiple samples collected at the crime scene.

Carter, 71, is accused of killing Eva Olesen, 57, in her Provo home in 1985. He was found guilty and sentenced to death later that year.

In 2022, Pullan reversed his conviction and sentence after his attorneys presented evidence of prosecutor and officer misconduct — witnesses had come forward to say they had been bribed and threatened. The Utah Supreme Court affirmed that ruling in 2025, sending the case back to the 4th District Court for another trial.

The trial is currently scheduled for eight weeks beginning July 26, 2027.

Victim's family still asks for no bail

Olesen's family is still asking the court to keep Carter behind bars while he awaits the new trial.

"To know he is out of jail wandering freely and capable of heinous acts puts the Olesen family in a vulnerable position. The security of knowing he will be confined while waiting trial is a guarantee for the victims that he will not be free to harm others and will stand trial," her son, Peter Olesen, said.

Eva Olesen's daughter-in-law, Theresa Olesen, spoke at Monday's hearing and said she believes it is best for Carter to remain in jail.

"We reiterate that the current findings do not exonerate Carter. Over 40 years ago, procedures did not happen as carefully as they do now. My feelings and concerns about the possibility of this release have not changed," she said.

She also said social media posts from Carter's family have caused them further distress, and that it is hard to see people who were not at Carter's trial make accusations about what happened there. Theresa Olesen said although they were hoping for a "concrete match" placing Carter at the crime scene, not getting that match doesn't mean he was not there.

"We still do not believe that he is completely innocent. There are other factors," she said. "We just want justice for Eva."

Prosecutors pointed to a signed confession from Carter and a missing gun that shoots the same ammunition as a gun owned by Carter's wife, which was also not recovered, and said he is not exonerated.

In his ruling, Pullan said Olesen's family has "carried the burden of her violent death for 40 years," and "understandably struggles" with the release of the man they feel is responsible.

Call to set an innocent man free

Carter's attorney Neal Hamilton has argued that Carter was threatened into making the confession. Pullan will soon decide whether that confession can be shown to any jurors at trial.

In Monday's hearing, Hamilton cited an FBI expert who said the murderer's blood would likely have been at the crime scene. He was emotional as he asked for Carter's release.

"We now know for a certainty that evidence is not from Doug Carter. He is not the murderer," he said. "We ask the court to set that innocent person free today."

Hamilton said they would agree to a GPS monitor, even paying for it himself because Carter could not, and would agree to a protective order requiring him to have no contact with any Olesen family members. He said they would have him enrolled in a re-entry program and arrange support for him.

Carter's son and daughter-in-law said at an earlier hearing that they would support him, and that they talk to him regularly.

After the hearing, Hamilton said prosecutors should have considered whether or not to continue to prosecute Carter last year and should make sure no one else goes through being convicted as an innocent person, even for smaller things like traffic tickets. He said there are additional safeguards for the death penalty that those accused of other crimes don't get.

He said Carter is dealing with trauma and PTSD from his time on death row.

"We all know Doug didn't do this. It's what he's been telling everyone for 41 years. Doug is not guilty of what he's been accused of, of what he's been convicted of. He's not guilty of what he spent 40 years on death row for," the attorney said.

Deputy Utah County attorney Erwin Petilos did not say he agreed or disagreed with releasing him on bail at this point.

"There were DNA results that did not include the defendant, so at this point the state is reassessing the remaining evidence in the case, and with that in mind, the state believed that a reassessment of the bail was necessary and fair," he said.

Related topics