The Calhoun County prosecutor says a man serving a life sentence for the murder of a 17-year-old girl in 1983 should stay behind bars.

Susan Mladenoff says the confession of an Arkansas prison inmate had many holes and doesn't clear Thomas Cress in the death of Patricia Rosansky.

Mladenoff spoke Thursday at a hearing to determine if the state parole board should recommend that Cress be released. Michigan U.S. Sen. Carl Levin is supporting Cress, and the Innocence Clinic at University of Michigan's law school has taken his case.

The 53-year-old Cress was convicted without any physical evidence. He declared his innocence to the parole board and says he's been "through hell." The state Supreme Court overturned a decision granting a new trial in 2003.