Bloomington man continues fight to clear his name

McLEAN COUNTY (25News Now) - A Bloomington man convicted of killing his daughter in 1998 continues the fight to clear his name and be freed from prison.

Bart McNeil was in McLean County Court Tuesday alongside his team with the Innocence Project.

He’s been fighting to prove his innocence for 25 years and he’s now another step closer to getting the chance to do it in court.

Tuesday, more than a dozen supporters turned out for his brief appearance.

Around this time last year, his team asked to present eight new pieces of evidence to the judge - including touch DNA of McNeil’s ex-girlfriend Misook Nowlin found on the deathbed of his daughter Christina.

However, only two pieces of evidence were approved - alleged confessions from Nowlin to other people.

Earlier Tuesday, the judge held his stance on these pieces. however, he is along more information about Nowlin to be brought in - including her past with law enforcement and DCFS.

Through this decades-long process, however, McNeil’s supporters feel this case isn’t being taken seriously.

“The system is set up to send people to prison and forget about them,” said Thomas Gorman. “It’s very difficult - we need conviction integrity unit for the whole state.”

The Innocence Project is narrowing in on ex-girlfriend Misook Nowlin in part because she was later convicted of murdering her mother-in-law in 2011.

This means we could hear from her family at the evidentiary hearing.

The state elaborated that this isn’t a re-trial of McNeil but rather a look back at previous decisions.

McNeil’s supporters want this case presented to a grand jury.

The exact date for new evidence to be presented in full has not yet been decided.

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