ATLANTA (AP) - The Supreme Court of Georgia has reversed a lower court decision that had thrown out the convictions and death sentence for a man accused of setting fire to a trailer with his three children inside, killing them all.
The lower court had thrown out convictions involving William David Riley of Covington based on its ruling on a finding that his trial attorney was ineffective.
In a unanimous decision released Monday, Georgia's highest court disagreed, sending the case back to the lower court to determine whether his death sentence should be reinstated.
Riley was convicted of murder and arson for the August 2000 Newton County trailer fire that killed his son and two daughters, ages 3, 5 and 6. He had been facing eviction from the trailer at the time.
