Walter Ogrod, man serving time for murder of 4-year-old Barbara Jean Horn, freed on bail

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner has announced Walter Ogrod, the man serving nearly three decades on death row for a child's murder, is - for now - a free man.

Ogrod will now be let out on bail and was granted a new trial.
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He was convicted in the July 1988 murder of 4-year-old Barbara Jean Horn.

Her body was found stuffed in a television box on a curb in front of her Castor Gardens home.

RELATED: 1992 report from Action News: Walter Ogrod arrested


After years of dead-end leads, police arrested Ogrod in 1992, and he gave a confession.
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Ogrod has maintained all along his confession was coerced by police.

RELATED: 1993 report from Action News: Walter Ogrod on trial


Ogrod went to trial twice - the first was declared a mistrial. He was convicted in October of 1996.
Action News reported in January that, according to the family and a recent court filing, male DNA found on the body of Horn is not that of Walter Ogrod.
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RELATED: January 2020 report on Ogrod case from Action News




Barbara Jean's mother said she believes his innocence.

"I believe firmly he was wrongly convicted," she said. "We hope that we get to have the person who took Barbara Jean away from us to pay for the crimes that he did."

Krasner is asking a judge to dismiss the case.