Court won't revisit big case won by prisoner

LANSING (AP) — A prisoner who won a big case at the Michigan Supreme Court has failed to persuade the justices to reopen it and clear his path to freedom.

In 2014, the Supreme Court said it was illegal for Gov. Jennifer Granholm to reduce Matthew Makowski’s no-parole sentence and then change her mind before leaving office.

With the ruling, lawyers for Makowski have argued that he should be released from prison like others whose sentences have been commuted by governors.

But courts say Makowski’s future now rests with the state parole board. The Supreme Court rejected another appeal last week.

Makowski admits he arranged the robbery of a co-worker at a Dearborn health club in 1988. But he insists he didn’t know Pete Puma would be fatally stabbed. Makowski wasn’t present.