The family of convicted killer, Scott Watson have expressed elation at the news his case is going back to the Court of Appeal.
Family have supported Watson as he has fought to prove his innocence since his conviction for murdering Ben Smart and Olivia Hope in the Marlborough Sounds 22 years ago.
The fact his case will be reconsidered by the Court of Appeal is still sinking in for her for his sister Sandy Watson who rang him upon hearing the news.
“It’s been a long long wait but I’m really happy that this has progressed to this point and that the Justice Minister and the Governor General have done the right thing,” she told 1 NEWS.
Watson's lawyer says it's been a long 20 year fight with a slew of appeals rejected.
“What I would ask people to do, particularly given this is a case that invokes really strong emotions in people, is to bear in mind that he says he’s an innocent man and if that’s the case he's been in prison falsely accused for over 20 years,” Barrister Nicholas Chisnall says.
DNA evidence is the basis of this latest appeal, contending that hair found on a blanket linking Olivia Hope to Watson's boat was unreliable.
“It is in everyone’s interest that we give the Court of Appeal the opportunity to consider the case again and potentially ensure that the right person is found guilty and that’s in everyone’s interests,” says Mr Chisnall.
1 NEWS has approached police for an interview on this decision but they say they can't comment as the case is now before the Court of Appeal.
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