U.S.

New Trial For Talk-Show Shooter

September 14, 1998 / 5:09 PM EDT / AP

The conviction of a man accused of shooting a gay admirer for revealing a secret crush on him during taping of The Jenny Jones Show has been overturned by the state Court of Appeals.

The court ruled that Jonathan Schmitz should have been allowed to remove a juror before the trial began.

The three-judge panel said that the error was harmful enough to throw out guilty verdicts and order a new trial on second-degree murder and felony firearm charges.

Prosecutors said they would appeal.

Schmitz, who is heterosexual, said he was humiliated when Amedure, 32, told him he had a secret crush on him during a March 1995 taping of the Chicago-based talk show, which never aired.

During the trial, witnesses said Schmitz believed he was going on the syndicated talk show to meet a female secret admirer, and was humiliated before the audience when the admirer turned out to be a man. The show never aired.

When the two returned to Michigan, police said Schmitz shot and killed Amedure at his Orion Township mobile home.

He was convicted in 1996 of second-degree murder and possessing a firearm during a felony. He was sentenced to 25 years to 50 years in prison on the murder charge and two years on the firearm charge. Schmitz was 26 years old at the time of the conviction.

Defense attorneys contended the show ambushed Schmitz, who already was fighting alcoholism, depression and a thyroid condition.

Jurors considered several possible charges against Schmitz, including first-degree murder which carries a mandatory life prison term -- but opted for second-degree murder.

Jurors said they felt Schmitz already had mental problems that the show exacerbated. They also said they felt Schmitz hadn't planned the slaying.

Jury selection for the case took three days. On the final day, Schmitz's lawyers asked the judge to remove a juror. Oakland County prosecutors objected, saying that because the defense had not made any objections to the juror the day before, they could not remove the juror then.

Judge Francis X. O'Brien sided with the prosecution.

The appeals court said Schmitz's attorneys should have been allowed to remove the juror at any point in the jury selection.

"We hold that it is impossible for this court to find that the trial court's error was harmless," the opinion said. "Consequently, we reluctantly conclude that, under the circumstances presented here, reversal of defendant's convictions is required."

Amedure's family has also sued Jones and distributor Warner Bros. for $50 million, claiming they were at least partly responsible for Amedure's death.

The show's producers denied misleading Schmitz to get him on the show, which was titled "Same-Sex Secret Crushes." Jones testified that she knew very little about how her show operates and usually gets scripts the night before a taping.