Lynnwood man convicted of 2014 killing ordered new trial

EVERETT, Wash. -- The second-degree murder conviction of a Washington state man was overturned after an appeals court found prosecutorial misconduct and ineffective counsel in the case.

The Daily Herald reports the state Court of Appeals on Monday reversed the conviction of Encarnacion Salas IV and sent the case for a new trial.

Salas was sentenced to 20 years in prison for the 2014 stabbing death of Jesus Cardenas Lopez near Lynnwood.

The court found that a former deputy prosecutor showed jurors two improper slides during the 2015 trial that suggested Salas was aggressive and intimidating while the victim was the opposite.

The court also found that Salas' lawyer should have objected to court testimony on comments made by Salas while he was undergoing treatment at a hospital after his arrest.