Joe Exotic’s latest legal gambit has ended with a one-line rejection from the Supreme Court.
Santa Rosa County Jail via AP
The Supreme Court has refused to consider Joe Exotic’s latest appeal, ending his attempt to overturn a conviction tied to a murder-for-hire plot. On Monday, justices issued a brief order declining to hear the case of Joseph Maldonado-Passage, the star of the Netflix series Tiger King, who was convicted in 2019 of plotting to kill his longtime rival Carole Baskin, according to the Hill.
Maldonado-Passage was found guilty of hiring two men, including an undercover FBI agent, to target Baskin, a prominent big-cat activist who frequently criticized the zoo he operated, as reported by Fox News.
His legal team had requested Supreme Court review, claiming that errors during his trial meant the evidence was not properly evaluated. With this rejection, Maldonado-Passage’s remaining route to freedom may lie in a presidential pardon. He has previously asked President Trump, President Joe Biden, and Trump again last year, but all requests were denied.
Maldonado-Passage is currently serving a 21-year prison sentence, while Baskin continues her work in wildlife conservation.
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