CHICAGO — A former professor at Northwestern University, Wyndham Lathem, has had his murder conviction set aside due to the fact that he was not permitted to speak with his lawyer during an overnight pause in the trial. This development comes after an Illinois Appeals Court panel made a unanimous decision on Friday to overturn Lathem’s first-degree murder conviction, which had been handed down in 2021.

The panel, in a 3-0 ruling, stated that Lathem’s constitutional right to legal counsel was infringed and ordered the case to be sent back to the lower court for further proceedings. In their written opinion, the appeals judges emphasized that any limitations on access to legal counsel during breaks in a trial should be imposed only in “exigent and unusual circumstances.” They also noted that a defendant’s right to have unrestricted access to their attorney is paramount over concerns about potential coaching, which could be addressed through cross-examination during the trial or by scheduling considerations.

Lathem was sentenced to 53 years in prison in 2022 for the murder of Trenton Cornell-Duranleau, who was fatally stabbed in 2017. At the sentencing, Cook County Judge Charles Burns described the crime as “cold-blooded” and an “execution.” Prosecutors presented evidence that both Lathem and an accomplice, Andrew Warren, inflicted more than 70 stab wounds on Cornell-Duranleau on July 27, 2017. It was claimed that Lathem had incentivized Warren to come to Chicago to carry out the murder.

Following the tragic event, Northwestern University terminated Lathem’s employment, as he had fled Chicago in the aftermath. During his trial, Lathem contended that Warren was solely responsible for stabbing Cornell-Duranleau, framing it as an outburst that arose from a drug-fueled sexual encounter involving the three men.

Andrew Warren, who was a financial officer at Oxford University, took a plea deal in 2019, in which he pleaded guilty to murder and agreed to testify against Lathem in exchange for a 45-year prison sentence. His testimony revealed that he had traveled from England to Chicago after forming a lethal pact with Lathem, which ultimately morphed into the plan to kill Cornell-Duranleau. Warren admitted in court that he did attack Cornell-Duranleau, but only after Lathem had already launched his own assault on the victim.