Murder Charges Dismissed for Archbold Man

An Arch­bold man was set free yes­ter­day after a West Vir­ginia judge dis­missed mur­der charges for lack of evi­dence. 52-year-old Charles Free­man, along with 40-year-old Joseph Metz of West Vir­ginia, were acquit­ted of the 1999 dis­ap­pear­ance and deaths of Metz’ mother and grand­mother. With no crime scene, mur­der weapon, or bod­ies, pros­e­cu­tors could only rely on tes­ti­mony given by David Hughes, also of Arch­bold. How­ever, the dis­missal was such that the case could be re-opened if new evi­dence came to light. Free­man and Metz had been held for more than 500 days.