COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) – A Boone County judge has rejected the state of Missouri’s objections to his recent ruling that criticizes the murder conviction of a Chillicothe man seeking a new trial.

Mark Woodworth was convicted twice in the 1990 shooting death of his neighbor, Cathy Robertson. He’s serving a life sentence.

In May, Circuit Judge Gary Oxenhandler ruled that Woodworth was the victim of “a manifest injustice” and should have his conviction set aside.

Attorney General Chris Koster had asked Oxenhandler to revise his ruling. Oxenhandler’s unchanged decision, which was announced Monday, now goes to the Missouri Supreme Court.

The high court appointed Oxenhandler in November 2010 as a special master in the case to review new evidence submitted as part of Woodworth’s latest appeal.