BAY MINETTE, Ala. _ Baldwin County defense attorney John Beck filed motions Monday to provide pro bono assistance in the defense of murder suspect Stephen Nodine, and new information discovered during an analysis of forensic evidence suggests Nodine is innocent of shooting Angel Downs, according to lead defense attorney Pascal Bruijn.

Bruijn earlier said contents on Angel Downs’ Blackberry cell phone did not contain incriminating evidence from voice or text messages moments before she was fatally shot once in the head at her Gulf Shores condominium May 9, 2010.

Nodine, a former Mobile County Commissioner, is charged with murder in Downs’ death. In December, a jury could not reach a verdict on that charge.

Earlier this month, District Attorney Hallie Dixon said Nodine’s shirt was being chemically evaluated for the presence of blood. She said that information would be available to the defense after she conferred with the Downs’ family last week.

"We are at a critical stage in the case and I've asked John Beck to assist me," Bruijn said in an e-mail.

"The state's recent disclosure of critical evidence (i.e., Angel Downs blackberry) has allowed the defense to counter the charges head-on and I'm excited to have John Beck assist me in preparing the case for trial.

"The recent forensic testing of my client's clothing was conclusive and conforms with what we've been saying all along. Mr. Nodine did not shoot Ms. Downs."

Beck gained notoriety last year as the lead attorney in the capital murder acquittal of Eric Buzbee, who was charged in the brutal murder of prominent Spanish Fort businessman Bobby Wilson.