Bay Point Man's 2002 Murder Conviction Overturned

A federal appeals court has overturned the murder conviction of a Contra Costa County man accused of killing his teenage girlfriend.

The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals said Wednesday Antwion Edward Thompson's confession that he killed 17-year-old Arie Bivins should not have been admitted at trial.

Authorities say Thompson fatally stabbed Bivins at her Pittsburg home on June 22, 1998 during an argument. He was 18 years old at the time.

A Contra Costa County jury in 2002 found him guilty of first-degree murder.

Thompson's attorney, J. Bradley O'Connell, said the Ninth Circuit recognized that Pittsburg police had failed to read Thompson his Miranda rights until after he confessed.

The state attorney general's office could still appeal the decision or seek a retrial.