Wilhite family holds vigil for Charles

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) - The District Attorney's decision on how to proceed with the Charles Wilhite case could be made very soon.

Just last month a judge granted him a new murder trial.

At 6:00AM Wednesday, his family and friends held a daybreak vigil in front of the Hampden County Hall of Justice. For them, the past 1,000 days that he has been in jail have been both a very private and public battle.

Wilhite's family and friends have organized in order to publicly advocate for him.

"We're just looking for the right thing to be done," Wilhite's uncle, Edward Cage said. "You have an innocent man locked up, and we want him freed."

Wilhite was convicted in 2010 in the 2008 murder of Alberto Rodriguez. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Last month, however, Judge Peter Velis granted Wilhite a new trial.

No physical was ever found linking Wilhite to the crime, and two witnesses retracted their testimony with one saying he was coerced by police into naming Wilhite as the shooter.

It has been 30 days since he was given that new trial. According to the organization "Justice for Charles," it's also time for District Attorney Mark Mastroianni to decide how to proceed.

The District Attorney can either go ahead with that trial, appeal the judge's decision to grant that new trial, or drop the charges altogether.