Michigan Supreme Court ruling allows prosecutors to appeal in Samantha Woll case

The Michigan Supreme Court will hear arguments from prosecutors seeking to retry Michael Jackson-Bolanos for home invasion in connection with the murder case of Detroit synagogue leader Samantha Woll.

The Sept. 9 ruling comes more than two years after a jury was deadlocked on the home invasion charge. The court will examine whether there is double jeopardy that would prevent a retrial because Jackson-Bolanos was acquitted of first-degree and second-degree murder.

Both sides will have 20 minutes to present an oral argument.

"We are encouraged that the Michigan Supreme Court will consider our arguments regarding why the language of the Double Jeopardy Clause should not preclude Defendant Jackson-Bolanos from being retried on the home invasion charge in the Samantha Woll case," Jon Wojtala, chief of appeals with the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office, said in a statement.

Woll, 40, was found stabbed to death outside her home in Detroit's Lafayette Park neighborhood in October 2023. Woll was the president of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue.

Jackson-Bolanos was charged in December 2023, and the trial began in the summer of 2024. He was found not guilty of first-degree murder but was convicted of lying to police. In addition to home invasion, the jury was deadlocked on the felony murder charge.

A court later ruled that Jackson-Bolanos could not be retried for murder in the case. The defense team is fighting for his release after he was granted parole in August 2026.

During the trial, Jackson-Bolanos testified that, on the night of Woll's death, he was walking around checking to see if cars were unlocked and came across Woll's body on the ground. He said he touched her neck to see if she was OK, and when he realized that she was dead, he left the area. Jackson-Bolanos acknowledged during testimony that he did not call police, saying that he had to consider the fact that he was going into cars when he found Woll's body.

Note: The video above originally aired on Aug. 4, 2026.