It's a case that has captured national and international attention -- when at 11-years-old Jordan Brown of Lawrence County was charged with killing his father's pregnant fiance.

On Wednesday, in a unanimous decision, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturned Brown's conviction on a first-degree murder charge.  Something former Lawrence County District Attorney Matthew Mangino tells 21 News is highly unusual.

"I was a bit surprised. Obviously, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court overturned a first-degree murder conviction or adjudication in this case because we're talking about a juvenile (when the crime was committed). You know it's not normal, it's unusual to see a decision like this that comes nine years after the offense," Attorney Mangino said.

Back on February 20th of 2009, Jordan Brown was 11-years-old when he was charged with the shotgun slaying of 26-year-old Kenzie Marie Houk and her unborn son.

Prosecutors said he committed the murder and then got on the school bus minutes later.

But fast forward nine and a half years and three appeals, Pennsylvania's Supreme Court has unanimously decided to throw out Brown's conviction.

His Attorney Dennis Elisco has been with him since day one, "We were ecstatic. We believed professionally and personally in Jordan's innocence the whole time."

Attorney Elisco says Brown's father was grateful and happy when he heard the news, and plans to appear at a news conference with his son Jordan on Friday.

This is likely to be Brown's final chapter in this tragic case because his attorney says anything else is considered double jeopardy.
 
"I hope the state police reopen the investigation and take their blinders off and find out whoever did this so that the family of the victims can have some closure and some justice," Attorney Elisco said.

Former Lawrence County District Attorney Mangin says the court did not necessarily say Brown was innocent, but that there wasn't enough evidence to find him guilty.

"Basically she (Justice Todd) concluded that there are other plausible explanations for how this crime was committed and who committed this crime.  She and her colleagues concluded it appears plausible that from the time Jordan Brown and his future step-sister who was seven years old, left for school, and when these workers came to the home that there would have been time for someone to come into the home and commit the murder," Mangino explains.

Justice Todd also felt that Houk's young daughter would have seen Jordan Brown with the shotgun because she was in an adjoining room watching television at the time.  The young girl said she did not hear a gunshot and never said anything about allegedly seeing Brown with a gun.

Jordan Brown is now 20-years-old and will be 21 at the end of August.  He is in his second year of college under another name and we're told he is moving forward with his life and his attorney says at some point the conviction will be expunged, and his record clean.

21 News did reach out to Debbie Houk, the mother of Kenzie Marie Houk, but she said she did not want to address the issue at this time. The victim's family has been raising her daughters.

The 47-page Supreme Court opinion can be viewed here: