A court in Michigan denied Doug Stewart's appeal. Stewart's attorneys argued that there was prosecutorial misconduct, that one of the witnesses threatened the jury, and that Stewart was denied a fair trial. The appelate court ruled against them.

Stewart is an ex-marine convicted of murdering his wife, Venus, in 2001.

In Session spoke with Venus' mother, Therese McComb, about Stewart's appeal and what life has been like since the trial.

Venus' family started The Venus Foundation dedicated to dometistic violence victims and their families.

Posted by: In Session's Alice Feigel
Filed under: MI v Stewart

A witness in the MI v Stewart case contradicted his own testimony when Ryan Smith interviewed him on In Session Thursday.

Douglas Stewart was accused of killing his wife.  The prosecution's primary witness in the murder trial was  20-year-old Xbox enthusiast Richard Spencer, who met Stewart as they played video games online. After months of chatting online and playing "Call of Duty," Spencer considered Stewart his "best friend." His new best friend then asked him to do him a favor – serve as an alibi so that Stewart could kill his wife Venus Stewart.

During Stewart’s trial, Brian Wages testified he had saw a suspicious driver that could have been connected to the disappearance Venus Stewart.  On In Session Thursday, Wages said he told police about a hole he saw next to a farmhouse that could be linked to Venus’s disappearance, but that police never investigated his claim.

A detective in the case, Sgt. Todd Petersen, tells us that Wages gave police two different stories and that he personally inspected the barn.  Petersen will be on In Session tomorrow at 12:15 p.m. to respond to Wage’s claims.

In the meantime, check out Wages’s full interview with In Session:

Posted by: In Session's Graham Winch
Filed under: MI v Stewart

A Michigan man stands accused of killing his wife, and a 20-year-old Xbox enthusiast is the prosecution’s primary witness in the murder trial.  Richard Spencer met Douglas Stewart as they played video games online. After months of chatting online and playing "Call of Duty," Spencer considered Stewart his "best friend." His new best friend then asked him to do him a favor – serve as an alibi so that Stewart could kill his wife. After meticulous planning and one failed attempt, Spencer pretended to be Stewart running a series of errands in Virginia while Stewart drove back to Michigan and allegedly killed his estranged wife, Venus Stewart. Venus' body was never found nor was there any physical evidence that her husband committed the crime; consequently, the prosecution's case will weigh heavily on Spencer's testimony. State troopers, the FBI, volunteers and psychics have searched fields and forests surrounding the town since Venus' disappearance... nothing has been found. Watch the video to get caught up on the case.

Posted by: In Session's Graham Winch
Filed under: MI v Stewart