WATCH: Yogurt shop murder defendants released on bond

Amid cheers, hugs and kisses, the two defendants charged in the yogurt shop murders walked out of jail Wednesday afternoon on personal recognizance bonds for the first time in 10 years.

Robert Springsteen and Michael Scott were freed from the Travis County Jail on bond pending their upcoming trials.

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KVUE's Clara Tuma reports

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Judge Mike Lynch ordered their release Wednesday morning after the Travis County district attorney asked that one of the trials be continued.

"As previously stated on the record, any such motion by the State would, if granted, result in this Court granting both this defendant (Michael Scott) and Robert Springsteen release on personal recognizance bonds," State District Judge Mike Lynch said previously in a written scheduling order.

Springsteen and Scott will both be re-tried for the murders of four teenage girls at a yogurt shop in North Austin in 1991. They were previously convicted in one of the slayings. Scott was sentenced to life in prison, and Springsteen was sent to death row, but both convictions were overturned on appeal.

Scott's retrial is set for July 6. No retrial date has been set for Springsteen.

When asked what it felt like to be out of jail after 10 years, Springsteen, who sat on death row for four years before his sentence was overturned, told reporters, "It feels wonderful. I'd like to thank God and my family and my attorney for this opportunity."

Springsteen was arrested in 1999 and confessed to being involved in the murders. He later recanted that confession.

"The first thing I told Robert was I was sorry it took so damn long for this day to come, and the promise I made him is that he's never going back," said Joe James Sawyer, Springsteen's attorney. "We're going to win this case and I don't care how that's done -- by trial or dismissal."

It took several hours for paperwork to be completed after the judge's order, and Scott walked out with his wife at his side.

"The big day will be when 12 people declare my husband not guilty so that this nightmare for our family is over and the state can start pursuing the actual perpetrators and give those girls' families some peace and the truth," said Jeanine Scott, defendant's wife. "The relief doesn't stop until they're not ever going to have to set foot in this courtroom again."

Scott is free on a $100,000 personal recognizance bond. His lawyers say he isn't a flight risk and argue he wants to go to court to prove his innocence.

"We feel confident that we can proceed into the future toward trial in this case of total and complete vindication for Michael Scott," said Carlos Garcia, attorney for Scott.

In a statement, Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg said the decision to ask for a continuance was difficult, but she said she believes it's the best course of action in order to successfully prosecute the case.

"Since the original trial of these two men, new developments in DNA technology have become available," Lehmberg wrote. "As we prepared for retrial, in March of 2008, we submitted various evidentiary items for what is called YSTR testing. This test looks for male DNA only and is deemed to be the most accurate test for samples that are mixtures of female and male DNA, as in this case.

"We sought this testing because we have an ongoing duty and responsibility to use the most up to date science available, to seek the truth in this and all the cases we prosecute," she stated.

The district attorney's office asked for conditions to be set on the bonds that would require Springsteen and Scott to remain in Travis County, have no contact with the victims' families or witnesses and not carry weapons, consume alcohol or illegal drugs.

"I don't think he's going to be a flight risk -- he's going to obey the orders of the court. He's going to come to court. He wants to be an active participant in proving his innocence," said Alexandra Gauthier, who also serves as Springsteen's attorney.

Both Springsteen and Scott are charged with four counts of capital murder in a December 1991 quadruple murder at an I Can't Believe It's Yogurt shop in North Austin.

Killed were 13-year-old Amy Ayers, 17-year-old Eliza Thomas and sisters 17-year-old Sarah and 15-year-old Jennifer Harbison. The teens were shot, and the yogurt shop was set on fire.

Sawyer says a major issue is unidentified male DNA taken from the crime scene but not discovered until last year.

Lynch on Monday refused to lower the bond for Springsteen, who argued that unidentified male DNA discovered last year showed someone else committed the murders. The defense says there is DNA from unidentified men in several places, but the state says there is only unidentified DNA from one man.

On Monday, Lehmberg said her office was still working to locate the source of that DNA.

Sawyer says the DNA proves his client lied when he confessed to the murders.

"I'm grateful that science has come to the point that we could do this year and last year what we could not possibly do when we tried this case the first time," Sawyer said.

It has been a long and painful journey for everyone involved in the yogurt shop murders.

In 1992, a number of suspects were questioned, including two Mexican nationals. No one was charged. In 1999, charges were filed against four men -- Michael Scott, Robert Springsteen, Forrest Welborn and Maurice Pierce. Charges against Welborne and Pierce were later dropped.

A jury convicted Springsteen of capital murder in 2001 and sentenced him to death. A year later, another jury convicted Scott and sentenced him to life in prison. Both men confessed to the murders, but later recanted, claiming those confessions were coerced. An appeals court overturned both convictions because of how those confessions were used at each of their trials.

KVUE News tried to contact the families of the victims. Some have moved away. Others said they don't want to relive the pain.

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KVUE News Reporters Jessica Vess, Jim Bergamo and Clara Tuma contributed to this report.