LOUISVILLE (WHAS11) -- The WHAS 11 I-Team has learned that the former detective at the center of two murder convictions that were overturned is now retiring from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department in Louisville.
Those with the sheriff’s department confirm that Mark Handy is retiring Wednesday.
The announcement of his retirement comes after two men were cleared of murder charges this week in Meade County. Keith Hardin and Jeff Clark were convicted of killing Rhonda Sue Warford in 1995. Their murder convictions were overturned in part because testimony by Handy was called into question and DNA evidence. While Hardin and Clark were awaiting a new trial, a judge signed an order to dismiss the murder charges against the men on Monday.
Handy is also connected to another murder case where a Louisville man was wrongfully convicted of murder. Edwin Chandler’s murder conviction was overturned in the killing of a store clerk in the 1990’s. Chandler says he gave a false confession because he says he was threatened by Handy. Investigators have said Handy testified that Chandler gave him statements only the killer would have known. With the help of the Department of Public Advocacy, authorities charged a man named Percy Phillips with the crime. They say his fingerprints were found on a beer bottle at the crime scene. Officials say Chandler was never at the scene.
Handy has declined comment on the matter.
