- Mauricio Melendez convicted of first degree murder after wife found dead
- Claimed during trial he was innocent as death in 2008 had been accidental
- Lawyers 'conceded his guilt' telling jury to convict him of manslaughter
- Later files petition alleging counsel had given him 'ineffective' assistance
- District Judge Abbi Silver has agreed ruling the verdict was 'unreliable'
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Mauricio Melendez has seen his conviction for first degree murder overturned after a judge ruled his lawyers gave ineffective assistance
A Las Vegas man facing a life sentence for murdering his wife has seen his conviction overturned – after a judge ruled that his trial lawyers were ineffective.
Mauricio Melendez was initially found guilty of first degree murder with a deadly weapon after his wife Chennel was found with a bullet wound to the head in a Las Vegas apartment in 2008.
But even though Nevada Supreme Court affirmed the conviction in August 2011, a district judge has agreed that the performance of the 40-year-old's lawyers at the time means the trial was 'unfair'.
In a written decision, District Judge Abbi Silver said: 'Taken as a whole, the performance of trial counsel fell below any objective standard of reasonableness to such an extent that it rendered the verdict unrel iable and the trial unfair.'
When police were called to a flat near Tropicana Avenue and Markway Avenue in Las Vegas on August 7, 2008, they found 33-year-old Chennel Melendez dead on a sofa.
Melendez was represented by Christy Craig and Scott Coffee from the County Public Defender's Office during his 2009 trial, according to the Las Vegas Review Journal.
He later filed a petition claiming his attorneys had given him ineffective counsel having conceded his guilt a trial.
District Judge Silver added: 'In her opening statement, Ms Craig assured the jury that the death of Chennel Melendez was an accident, and that there would be absolutely no evidence of motive or evil intent.
'(Melendez) proclaimed his innocence, testifying that the shooting was accidental. However, Mr. Coffee, in his very last statement to the jury, conceded his client's guilt, telling the jury they should convict him of manslaughter.'
She said that explaining to the jury that Melendez was guilty of manslaughter 'undermined' the credibility of the defence case.
Clark County Court where District Judge Abbi Silver has ruled that the verdict in the trial of Mauricio Melendez was 'unreliable'
And she added that the defence team should have used an expert at the trial to support the claim that it was an accidental shooting.
Scott Coffee, who has spent 20 years in the Clark County Public Defender's office, told the Review Journal that his team always maintained the shooting was unintentional and that lawyers often had to change their strategy during trials.
Public Defender Phil Kohn described the two lawyers as 'excellent' adding that they were prepared for the trial.
Melendez will stay in custody while prosecutors appeal the District Judge's ruling.
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