DETROIT (WXYZ) — On Thursday, Michael Jackson-Bolanos was back in court as the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office attempts to retry him for the murder of Samantha Woll.
Woll was found stabbed death outside her Detroit condo in October.
Last week, a jury was deadlocked and unable to reach a verdict on two counts against Jackson-Bolanos, including felony murder and home invasion.
He was found not guilty of first-degree murder and guilty of lying to police.
VIDEO: Jury delivers partial verdict in murder of Samantha Woll, deadlocked on felony murder
Jackson-Bolanos' attorney said her client cannot be retried. Woll's father and sister told 7 News Detroit they're convinced he's guilty.
The defense filed a motion to dismiss the case against Jackson-Bolanos on Wednesday.
At his pretrial hearing Thursday, the judge told the prosecution to submit a response stating why his murder case should be retried. That must be submitted by Aug. 2.
After court Thursday, 7 News Detroit spoke with Woll's sister, Dr. Monica Woll-Rosen and her father, Dr. Douglas Woll. Her sister said this was the most difficult five weeks her family has ever experienced since learning of the tragedy.
"What I've seen in the media this week has infuriated me. The defense has been working hard to make this case about race when it should be about evidence and in this case, the evidence points very clearly to one man and that man is Michael Jackson-Bolanos," she said.
Hear more from Woll-Rosen in the video below:
Woll-Rosen said Samantha Woll spent her life breaking down racial stereotypes and boundaries and that she'd be the last person to want to see someone wrongly accused.
Douglas Woll said, "As Monica so eloquently put it, it's not about race. It's about the evidence and we believe the evidence overwhelmingly points to Michael Jackson-Bolanos."
Woll-Rosen highlighted the fact other people were also investigated.
"Through a long and exhaustive process, these suspects were excluded one by one because no evidence connected them to the murder," she said.
In direct response to that, Jackson-Bolanos' attorney Purna Krishnamurthy questioned, "How far were they actually investigated? To what degree was that investigation actually done?"
She said, "I think it would be unfair of anyone to turn a blind eye to the obvious issue of race that exist, not only in this case but in this world."
Krishnamurthy said her client cannot be retried based on a previous case that set precedent.
"In that case, the felony was dismissed along with the felony that attached to it," she explained. "That person was found not guilty of first-degree murder with the underlying second-degree murder as well."
She started a petition online at change.org.
"And what we're trying to do is just shine a light to the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office to let them know that Michael Jackson-Bolanos is supported from everyone. There may be a pocket of people who believe that he may be guilty but overwhelmingly, the majority of people believe in his innocence," Krishnamurthy explained.
On Aug. 9, Jackson-Bolanos will be sentenced for lying to police, which carries a maximum of 15 years in prison.
