Detective In Tim Masters Case Resigns From Police Department

FORT COLLINS, Colo. (CBS4) - The police detective who helped put Timothy Masters behind bars for murder is making a big change.

Timothy masters spent 10 years in jail for a crime he didn't commit. He was finally exonerated.

Two months ago District Attorney Ken Buck requested that perjury charges against Lt. Jim Broderick be dropped. Buck said he did not believe there was enough evidence for a conviction.

On Saturday it was reported that Broderick resigned from the Fort Collins Police Department after being on paid administrative leave for three years. He was placed on leave in 2010 after being indicted on perjury charges for the way he handled the Masters case.

Although the charges against Broderick were dropped, the internal investigation by Fort Collins police was ongoing. But with his resignation the investigation is now suspended.

Fort Collins Police Chief John Hutto says the department has learned from the case.

"We as an organization made mistakes and we are better for having made the mistakes because we've learned," Hutto said. "I've mentioned a few of the things we've put in place. We do much, much better today than we did back in the late 1980s and since then."

Master was accused in the 1987 murder of Peggy Hettrick. He was just 15 when she was murdered. Her killer has still not been found.