A Minnesota Court of Appeals ruling Tuesday could give a man who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in 2005 a chance to withdraw his guilty plea.

The appellate court reversed a ruling by Ramsey County District Court in the case of Rafael H. Bryson, 24, and sent the case back to the lower court for more fact-finding and possibly another hearing.

Bryson, 24, of St. Paul, was accused of fatally shooting Joshua Daniel Smith, 26, during a robbery attempt Feb. 27, 2005, in the 400 block of Case Avenue near Burr Street.

Bryson pleaded guilty in September 2005 after learning that police had found gunshot residue on his shirt and had located the gun that killed Smith. He agreed to a sentence of just over 23 years.

But in March 2006, he appealed, arguing that he hadn't been told before his plea about test results showing that his DNA had not been found under the victim's fingernails and no blood had been found on his shirt. He also argued that his plea was not made voluntarily.

The lower court had not made any ruling on Bryson's motion regarding the disclosure of the DNA test results but said his motion to withdraw his plea was "not timely."

The Appeals Court said in its unpublished opinion Tuesday that Bryson's plea was, indeed, made "voluntarily and intelligently." But it reversed the lower court's ruling on the timing of the motion and returned the case to the lower court to determine what, if any, action should be taken on the disclosure of the test results.

PAT PHEIFER