Thank God, after all these years, someone is finally doing something about Dennis Dechaine asking to have a DNA test.

Rep. John Martin, D-Eagle Lake, has crafted a bill to consider a trial for Dechaine using the DNA testing he has been asking for to prove his innocence.

It is hard to believe that the people with the power to get a trial for him have allowed him to sit in jail for 22 years when a simple test could prove his innocence. How do they sleep at night?

Dechaine’s frustration must be unbearable, knowing that he is innocent and being denied every opportunity to prove it. It is understandable why he tried to commit suicide; one person can take only so much disappointment, agony and hellish conditions.

The same can be applied to the family of Sarah Cherry, every time a new trial or testing is discussed, they have to relive the whole thing over again. They will now know for sure whether Dechaine was the one who brutally murdered their daughter, or if the guilty one is still out there, perhaps reoffending.

When Dechaine is proven innocent, it will be a difficult job to find out who did do this heinous act and find out how many other innocent little girls he has brutalized in the 22 years he has been free.

Former Attorney General Janet Mills sees a problem with proving Dechaine’s innocence because she feels it is going to step on too many toes. I believe she is right, and I also believe the time has come to find out the truth.

Gail French

Belgrade