RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Attorneys for a former Army physician serving life sentences for the 1970 murders of his pregnant wife and two young children at a North Carolina base say he should be released. They cited deteriorating health as the reason for their request Thursday to free Jeffrey MacDonald. MacDonald’s lawyers and the federal government argued over the request before a federal judge in Raleigh. The ex-physician was convicted in 1979. He’s now 77 years old and serving time in Maryland. The federal government’s lawyers oppose his release. The brother of his slain wife urged the judge to keep him behind bars. The judge didn’t immediately rule.
