Ferak argues the crooked Kocourek would have promoted those indebted to him (which Petersen certainly was after the Gina Hxxxx incident). In addition to their ever increasing involvement in the Sheriffs Department, the Hermann family owned the long operating Cleveland Auto Salvage (CAS) in southern Manitowoc County, one of a select few salvage yards that competed with the Avery Salvage Yard (ASY). I wished to catch what type of reaction this would bring. Dogs don't lie, and this was a cadaver dog alert (scent of death) PLUS a bloodhound alert (scent of Teresa). You better hope you have a good PR team handy. All rights reserved. He really is very lucky he didnt hit another vehicle or a pedestrian. As with everything else in this case, we must determine the value or worth of each claim based on the available evidence. Your department is a JOKE. She was there at one point. The crime lab, however, was not called immediately. ", Alison Dirr: 920-996-7266 or adirr@gannett.com; on Twitter @AlisonDirr;Manitowoc Herald Times ReporterreporterSarah Kloepping:920-686-2105 or skloepping@htrnews.com; on Twitter@SarahKloepping. Four critical aspects of this corruption are: Fraudulent prosecutions (utilizing criminal conduct) that appear to be done as favors so that well-connected insiders can profit in the civil realm from the fraudulent criminal convictions. The facts and evidence tell a different story. He was hired immediately. Ferak claims to have spoken to many former MCSD employees who said Petersen was driving way over the limit through the fog in a reckless manner. Was Steven actively bleeding in the RAV or did someone plant his blood there from a limited source? After the dog handlers were shooed away, MCSD officers Lenk and Colborn were called to the scene with Bushman. This needlessly destructive method of recovery ensured no meaningful examination could ever take place. ", 11. A review of the department's many different negligent driving incidents prior to Ricky, as well as an examination of how, post Ricky's death, his mother eventually caught the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department in a bold faced lie regarding their investigative efforts into her son's hit and run. As you might have guessed, Kocourek didn't push Bushman to conduct an investigation that would result in a member of the Hermann family, a member of his own department, being indicted for felony vehicular homicide. Honestly though, someone tell me, in what universe is that ^ level of destruction necessary when processing a crime scene that wasn't even properly photographed yet? Readers are invited to contribute.Phone calls to the Manitowoc County District Attorney's office this morning were not successful. Oddly, neither of Gina's male companions were injured in the initial motorcycle collision, which suggests perhaps Gina would have survived if not for Petersen striking her with his vehicle at high speed. Keep in mind, Ferak attempts to draw a correlation between Bushman's conduct during Ricky's case compared to his conduct during Teresa's case. Ferak is not a fan of either, but specifically notes that Kocourek's legacy with the Sheriffs Department was one synonymous with crookedness and corruption (Pg. Based on what she had seen, Bolick said she thinksthe series is one-sided. she asked, referencing Avery's$36 million civil lawsuit against the county for hiswrongful conviction. Sheriff Petersen was still doing whatever he could to help cover up the truth from behind the scenes such as when he threatened Coroner Kakatsch with arrest if she tried to access the scene of Teresa's mutilation, as was required of her by statute. I could see him getting a dog or two and maybe becoming a rancher. At or around 10:30 a.m. Bushman's Group A discovered the burial site just off the Kuss Road cul-de-sac, not even a half mile from the Avery Salvage yard property boundary. I just can't be sure if it happens at the state of Wisconsin appeals level, the state Supreme Court level or before a federal court. Corruption County Manitowoc, Wisconsin Strikes Again; Targets Critic to Protect Old Wrongful Convictions Manitowoc County Sheriff Uses Office to Silence Critic of Wrongful Convictions Madison, Wisconsin Manitowoc, Wisconsin is Corruption County USA. The series explores many collateral matters, while the book zeroes-in on suspects and motives for the murder, which was not a focal point in the series.". "Shocked seeing the Netflix series 'Making a Murderer.' A civil lawsuit victory for Steven Avery was undoubtedly a loss for not only Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department, but the DOJ and Attorney General as well. Here is a link to PART ONE: Fuck-ups, Cover-ups and Promotions, largely concerning Sheriff Kocourek and his repeated promotions to inexperienced new hires, Petersen and Bushman, who both happened to be involved in (separate) grossly negligent on-duty traffic accidents that were quickly swept under the rug by Kocourek. Here is a summary of Feraks examination of the incident, the resulting death, and the total lack of investigation into Petersen's potential culpability (Pg. After everything, MCSD escaped facing civil liability and a family was forced to say goodbye to their daughter. Obligatory: Any factual inaccuracies are mine, not Ferak's. Thanks Hermann! Terrible and corruption run rampant!!! I truly wonder about the way justice is meted out in Wisconsin and Manitowoc County in particular. Such a deviation from established protocol when collecting evidence of a crime is a strong indication of BAD FAITH, in this case the destruction / fabrication of evidence. ", 6. Kakatsch kept trying to access the scene after being rebuffed. ", John Ferak: 920-993-7115 orjferak@gannett.com; on Twitter@johnferak, People protest at pro-Steven Avery rally in Manitowoc, Politician: Steven Avery's eyes prove he's guilty, No Steven Avery evidence planted: detective, Lt.Andrew Colborn fires back at"Making a Murderer" critic, Sheriff Rob Hermann urges letter writer to do more research, Manitowoc politician calls emails "borderline threatening. After all was said and done, Bushman didn't show up once after November 7, and never wrote a report about what he did at the scene on Kuss road (nor did Lenk or Colborn IIRC). McConnell said she feels bad that Halbach's parents have to go through this again now that the documentary has created such a furor. Cookie Notice After working as a bus driver for years Bushman applied to the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department in 1974 with no prior experience in law enforcement. Petersen is also on record casually discussing how murdering Steven Avery would be preferable to framing him, a remarkable statement about an extrajudicial killing from the County's top law enforcement officer - a statement both the defense and filmmakers said deeply troubled them. Notably, both cadaver dogs and bloodhounds independently made their way to the scene, which meant the burial site was emanating the scent of decomposition as well as Teresa's scent, likely because her decomposing remains were present at the burial site. I could see him drinking Coors beer, but not Sam Adams or Corona. 154) the older Hermann brother announced to the press in the morning that the striking vehicle was determined to be an older Chevy or Van. After reportedly driving around all night to different dealerships with the improperly collected car parts in his vehicle (Pg. 2023 www.postcrescent.com. I used to think of cranes when I heard the name Manitowoc, not anymore . The boys in the club had once more saved themselves from facing civil liability, just like they did with Gina Hxxxxx (from Part One) and Ricky Hotchstetler (from above). ", 15. Suggesting that Steven "might kill again" before he was even convicted of Teresa's murder totally ignores Steven's presumption of innocence while speculating about future murders. After the rape victim was manipulated into identifying Steven as her attacker, Kocourek ordered PETERSEN and BUSHMAN to arrest Steven Avery for the attempted murder and false imprisonment he had reason to know was committed by Gregory Allen (Petersen and Bushman followed Kocourek's orders without question). Manitowoc County is now officially on the map for having the most corrupt (law enforcement officers) in the nation, congrats. In Florida, John Rider of the Village of Virginia . Steve Curtis Thompson II was convicted in Moore County, North Carolina, of voter registration fraud after voting twice in the 2012 general election. I see him wearing old tattered blue jeans, tank tops and sandals. Without doubt this boys club covered for each other. 153). Soon after the initial collision Officer Petersen sped by in his squad car and, due to the thick fog, literally ran over Gina while racing to a nearby bar to investigate claims of underage drinking. If skeptics of Avery's alleged innocence reads The Wrecking Crew, what do you hope they take away from it? For example, Coroner Kakatsch quit her position as County Coroner after Steven and Brendan were convicted, telling the filmmakers through watery eyes although she loved her job she didnt feel safe working in the position any longer. Unbelievable! ", 19. Anonymous gets involved in Steven Avery case, claiming police corruption. As such, it's no wonder both Petersen and Bushman became Kocourek's loyal underlings, helping him and the department out in 1985 (re: Penny) in 1999 (re: Ricky) and in 2005 (re: Teresa). I see him leading a laid-back life and enjoying the solitude. Ferak correctly observed that, like Kocourek, "Bushman owed a tremendous debt of gratitude to the Hermann family.. Point being, Bushman was attempting to ice any further discussion about a police cover-up from Ricky's dad, and it seemed to have worked. Allegedly, the older Hermann brother (instead of driving around all night to different dealerships) took the improperly collected evidence to his familys salvage yard and swapped out the damaged car parts from the scene for older car parts so to redirect the upcoming vehicular homicide investigation away from the Hermann family, their business and vehicles. Local officials and organizations havebeen bombarded with taunts and questions and requests over the Netflix docu-series, "Making a Murderer." Part Three (Three Criminal Investigations) will focus on reviewing the multiple different DOJ Criminal Investigations of Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department throughout the years, including investigations concerning the department's handling of the Steven Avery and Ricky Hotchstetler cases. And before we knew it our entire review section was tarnished and it had nothing to do with the actual historical society or what we do or our mission. Not to mention, was Ricky's father even embarrassed, or was he red faced and flustered because he realized a corrupt cop was trying to intimidate him into staying silent about his concerns of a police cover-up? The incident was not brought before the Departments Accident Review Board as was procedure when squad cars sustained damage. Manitowoc County comprises the Manitowoc, WI Micropolitan Statistical Area. Ferak reviewed the Hochstetler hit and run case to, among other things, establish the possibility that Bushman engaged in corrupt conduct by helping disappear pieces of evidence. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, "Wrecking Crew: Demolishing the Case Against Steven Avery", Petersen told reporters Steven "could be a con man", offering to pay for the investigation if another department took over. A pattern could arguably be established. Sheriff at the time of Steven's 2003 exoneration / 2005 arrest for Teresa's murder. As it relates to the January incident, Manitowoc police say what led to the exchange in a squad car . Kocourek helped smooth things over after both Petersen and Bushman were involved with serious collisions in their squad cars in the 1980's. Unfortunately, threats and intimidation are often effective. IMO the theory that Bushman and Hermann worked together to swap out evidence of the striking vehicle in the Ricky H case is made credible by their own actions. People like you are a plague on our country. The city of Manitowoc Police Department, which has no connection to the sheriffs department, also has been fieldingcalls and comments on its social media accounts from around the world. All evidence points towards the incompetence of your department I hope and pray your department and local police and that judge are found out, and YOU rot in jail. But still, "as far as the show goes, I wouldn't trust that guy. In a notice of promotion (to Lieutenant) Kocourek said of Bushman (Pg. The county historical societys star rating on its Facebook page plummeted after dozens of people most from outside Wisconsin began posting negative reviews and comments related to Avery. 4. In episode five of the series, Hermann said he noticed during an interview between Avery and law enforcement, the time counter jumps forward, then back, then forward again. 1/9/2016 12:30 AM PT. Carl. Again, Ferak theorizes Kocourek was steadily promoting those whose involvement in serious incidents he helped down play, such as Petersens running over a citizen, or Bushmans driving through an intersection at high speed and decently wrecking his squad car. The pair collided with a second motorcycle operated by their friend who was traveling with them in the same direction. ", 18. Then out of the blue in 1975 Petersen applied to the Manitowoc County Sheriffs Office (Pg. No mention of the accident or fatality can be found Petersens employment file or in any of his promotion notices. In their latest vendetta against alleged injustice, supposed members of the hacktivist group Anonymous have pledged to expose corruption in the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department. Why him? Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. The image of the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department took a major hit afterlastDecember's release of "Making a Murderer" on Netflix, andSheriff Rob Hermann isstillstrugglingtoovercomeperception problems generated by the docu-series. Indefensible 67m Does Wisconsin know what JUSTICE is? Not to mention, Hermann's decidedly unique access to nearly unlimited car parts from his family's Auto Salvage Yard fits in with such theories (again, I want to note such conspiracies originated in the community long ago, not on reddit after MAM). Get this shit. What a joke of a department. 57m As Steven starts creating a new life for himself, he pursues a lawsuit against Manitowoc County law enforcement officials for corruption in his case. Unfortunately, I think the film has done a lot of damage and is definitely not the way Manitowoc County would like to be put on the map.. After days of nothing being found, Manitowoc County (Bushman) found the remains at the Kuss road burial site and quickly moved the evidence away from the burial site so the crime lab could be called and "clear" the scene, officially reporting nothing was found. I will also draw many connections between the Manitowoc County, Calumet County, and the DOJ in the interest of highlighting just how tangled this web is. Of course Hermanns declaration about the striking vehicle was based on an examination of evidence that had no real chain of custody. After failing to find employment in his chosen field Petersen begrudgingly took a retail store job to make ends meet. "I have never been the big paranoid person but after one of the emails I received contained the line and I quote 'ROT IN HELL FOR ALL ETERNITY YOU EVIL BASTARD!' Kocourek wanted underlings who felt indebted to him, who would cover for the department as he covered for them. The DOJ was not unfamiliar with Manitowoc's reputation, and more importantly, their history with Steven Avery. And if it's true that Bushman and crew found and removed evidence of Teresa's death at the burial site, we must include Bushman, Lenk and Colborn in our list of suspects for who planted the bones in Steven's burn pit. Come 2005 Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department was stacked to the tits with officers who would have done damn near anything to help out their former corrupted boss, Sheriff Kocourek. And of course, the crime lab reported nothing was found at the burial site. It all depends on the luck of the draw in terms of the appeals court judges Zellner gets. Unfortunately threats and intimidation are often effective. Why would they collect critical evidence without properly tagging or taking photos? 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