PORTLAND — A judge has set bail for a Maine man who’s spent nearly 30 years in prison for a 1989 murder and whose guilt has been called into question by new evidence.

The key witness in Anthony Sanborn’s trial now says she didn’t see the killing. The judge is considering a motion for a new trial and set bail at $25,000 on Thursday.

Hope Cady testified Thursday she was coerced by police and prosecutors who told her what to say at trial. She says she had no knowledge of the killing, which happened when she was 13.

Sanborn supporters packed the courtroom and broke into applause when he entered. Both Sanborn and the victim, Jessica Briggs, were 16 at the time of her death.

Officials say Briggs’ throat was slit and she was stabbed repeatedly before being thrown in Portland Harbor.

Anthony Sanborn’s bail was set at $25,000 — 30 years after he was convicted in the killing of Jessica Briggs.


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