CALDWELL, Texas — Crucial evidence is missing and might never be found in the case of a former death-row inmate awaiting a retrial on a capital murder charge, a special prosecutor said.

The missing evidence includes the skull caps and clothing of the victims, special prosecutor Patrick Batchelor told Burleson County District Judge Reva Towslee-Corbett this week.

Anthony Graves' 1994 capital murder conviction was thrown out by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last year when it found that prosecutors withheld evidence and elicited false testimony. Authorities decided to retry Graves.

Batchelor's acknowledgment about the missing evidence came after Graves' bail was reduced from $1 million to $600,000. He remained in jail Saturday.

Other missing evidence from the original trial includes fingerprints, bullets from the victims, a bloody hammer and a hunting knife, Batchelor said. He said he plans to find or account for the missing items by May 1. The trial is set to begin July 10.

"Because of the change of jails and personnel, we may not have a definitive answer, except to say that they are gone," Batchelor said.

Since Graves was arrested in 1992, a new jail has been built and key police personnel have changed.

Defense attorney David Mullin said he would seek a dismissal of the case if the evidence does not turn up. The only remaining evidence are several photos and six knives used as props in a demonstration by the medical examiner, Mullin said.

Mullin also said that the bail was still too high for Graves.

Graves was convicted in 1994 for the deaths of Bobbie Joyce Davis, 45; her 16-year-old daughter, Nicole; and four grandchildren ages 4 to 9. The victims were shot, stabbed and beaten on Aug. 18, 1992, and their Somerville home was set on fire to conceal the crime.

Co-defendant Robert Carter, who was sentenced to death for the murders, testified against Graves at his trial, but later recanted parts of his story and said he acted alone. Carter proclaimed Graves' innocence before his execution.

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Information from: Houston Chronicle, http://www.chron.com

Information from: The Bryan-College Station Eagle, http://www.theeagle.com