Author Archives: Joan Treppa

First Do No Harm…

4 Replies

I draw much of my knowledge and strength from within but I cannot say where I’d be without the teachings and experiences of others who also guide me through this crazy life.

I’ll tell you about the people who’ve taught me some very important lessons about labeling, pointing fingers, and maintaining integrity. Through all of these individuals, I’ve learned a true capacity for empathy, to err on giving the benefit of the doubt, and allowing those who’ve done wrong a shot at redemption. I’ve also learned the most valuable lesson of all; forgiveness.

P1040271

John Johnson and Steve Kaplan 

Attorney, Steve Kaplan, and retired crime scene expert, John Johnson, have been lightning rods in my mission to help the wrongfully convicted. They’ve shown more generosity than I’ve ever known a person to possess. These men are compassionate beyond words and despite the many lifelong accomplishments under their belts, they remain humble. They rank high on my list of unsung heroes. Because of them our world is a much better place.

Johnny is a lifelong enforcer of the law. For over thirty years, he’s been dedicated to going after the bad guys. When something’s amiss, you’d better get out of his way so he doesn’t knock you over in an attempt to fix it. When he and I first met, he was retired but still assisting others while always on the lookout for the next opportunity. He’s a believer of the truth and of honoring ones work-related oath. In fact, I was warned early on that he hates liars. He can make you laugh until the tears flow or he can knock your socks off with his stories of bravery.

When Johnny and I had our first conversation about the Wisconsin Monfils case in 2011, he told me that during his career he had seen both good and bad cops and that it had always been his goal to maintain honest integrity. When he picked up on my urgent need for help that day, he stepped up without hesitation. He often shares the irony of having spent his entire career making sure people got locked up to now spending his time trying to get them out! It had never occurred to him that there are innocent people in prison because of his faith in our judicial system. But let’s face it, we must acknowledge that the system is run by humans and that humans make mistakes.

Just over a year ago Steve Kaplan was planning to retire from a long career at Fredrikson&Byron, PA; a very large and respected Minneapolis law firm. He’d spent the better part of his career helping others but he now had plans to scale way back and focus on spending time with his family. He’d just finished working on a very tiring and challenging, but successful death row exoneration case that had lasted over a decade. He was ready to hand pressing legal matters over to more energetic hands. He thought he might dabble in a little legal work after retirement, but the overall idea was to have less stress and more time to relax.

That idea would soon be abandoned after an unscheduled meeting with both Johnny and me in January of 2013. Neither of us realized at the time of this meeting that our two-year search to find an attorney willing to dig in, would end that day with Steve. Upon reviewing what Johnny and I had given him, he agreed the convictions in this case were erroneous at best and needed to be vacated. He promised to look more in-depth at the information Johnny had supplied him with.

Steve did end up retiring. But after close to six weeks, he returned to the firm to work on this case full time. He also recruited a team of legal professionals to help him. Steve agreed the firm would represent one of the five men still in prison and, in the meantime, find additional attorneys for the other four.

Attorneys in Wisconsin soon got on board. Expert witnesses were eventually hired. The overall focus of this team was to put their clients needs first because of their understanding that these men have suffered greatly by enduring a life absent of their families, friends, jobs, and activities they love. The work necessary to bring this case into a courtroom continues. But the five men now have hope because of the many people in both states who believe in them, and fight for their freedom.

None of us have regretted our commitment to pursuing justice for these men. We’ve had our share of disappointments as we navigate the legal challenges but we’ve never lost sight of the effects this tragedy has had on six men and their families. We all feel privileged to be part of this mission.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Exonerees Koua Fong Lee, Audrey Edmunds, Fred Saecker, Damon Thibodeaux and Mike Piaskowski

This experience has especially taught me the importance of avoiding negative feelings toward the system or toward those who cause its failings. The unexpected benefit to doing this has manifested positive feelings and understanding in all aspects of my life. Largely responsible for those lessons are the very people who live them; the wrongfully convicted. Many of those who are good friends, have figured out how to let go of their anger toward a system that wronged them. They focus on a renewal of relationships with their families and friends. They’ve begun to truly live and love again and they serve as an example to us all.

As in all successful ventures, this one perseveres because of the special people who care enough to get involved and do the hard work necessary to make it happen…in a first do no harm sort of way.

My Somehow Hopeful Birthday Wish…

Leave a reply

What kind of a birthday card does one buy for a person in prison? Now consider the fact that this person has been wrongfully convicted and that he has served nineteen years of a life sentence. The answer didn’t come easily as I went to purchase my very first one.

When I turned over the calendar to March a few days ago, there it was in big bold words, Keith Kutska’s birthday; Keith being one of my five guys serving a life sentence in the Wisconsin Monfils case. I’ll note that for the past two years Keith has sent me beautiful birthday cards he’s paid for out of his prison account. Money is a precious commodity and every penny counts. But he chose to use it to buy a card for me….twice. What’s more, I do not recall ever telling him when my birthday is so he took the initiative to find out. And for both years the cards came on the exact day of my birthday.

Most cards say Happy Birthday but that didn’t seem appropriate. Of course, you do expect the recipient will be having a cheerful and special day anytime soon, but I didn’t want to make a fuss or totally ruin his day by being overly obsessed by the dilemma either. But the choices were slim so I did choose a card that says “Happy Birthday”. However, I’m crossing out “Happy” to instead say Hopeful Birthday which I think is more appropriate with the message on the inside: “Wishing you everything that will make this day a special one for you”.

To my friend, Keith, whom I wrote this blog piece for, I hope that this card puts a big smile on your face and that all of your hopes and dreams come true this year. I also hope that by the time your next birthday rolls around, you’ll be able to celebrate it at home in the loving arms of your wife and life’s companion.

With love and friendship,

Joan

A Conspiracy of What? And by Whom?

3 Replies

Before I point out the many errors in one of the most egregious wrongful conviction cases ever; the 1992 paper mill death of Tom Monfils, I must say that I’m deeply saddened by the insulting nature of a case that would be laughable if not utterly tragic. A community torn apart by a ridiculous series of events that led to the convictions of six innocent men sends chills up and down my spine. Why?

The argument that these “union thugs” became party to a “conspiracy” or “code of silence” through harassment that got out of hand and turned into murder, seems plausible enough. But then you learn these men were from two different unions and some of them didn’t even know each other. You are then asked to accept that they collectively forged a rock solid pact between themselves to hide their horrific deed in order to protect their high-paying jobs.

How on earth can anyone believe that these actions could go anywhere but south, leading to certain imprisonment because of the simple improbability that all of them could remain silent for any length of time. Now imagine placing that amount of trust in one or more persons, considered only as acquaintances, and being able to work alongside them efficiently, disposing of a body no less, in record time. Finally, imagine this collaborative effort is accomplished without leaving behind a single trace of physical evidence or eyewitnesses.

I can no longer subject myself to older news stories about this case because of my knowledge of the questionable tactics used to terrify vulnerable victims and send six innocent men to prison! I recall an old video clip with an image of all six men being paraded out of the courtroom in handcuffs after being found guilty. I recall also having been told by a family member how she found herself amidst cheers in a public restaurant when that news was televised. But the most devastating thing of all is an understanding of the ONLY true conspiracy; the one forged by the very people sworn to uphold an oath to defend the absolute truth.

Below is a list of facts deemed accurate by our legal team. In my opinion, they do not begin to tell the complete story of the deceit, trickery, and downright unethical tactics used during the original two and a half year investigation. The dedication and countless hours being donated by those willing to uncover and expose these untruths is admirable. I stand in awe of a situation that represents the worst as well as the best of humanity…

The six men are innocent. They did not murder Tom Monfils.

A crucial mistake by the Green Bay Police Department set a series of events in motion which led to the disappearance of Tom Monfils.

Many known aspects of the case were never considered or explored. The current team of lawyers is looking at evidence that was never examined before, that will prove the men are innocent.

The trial transcripts have been thoroughly reviewed and the team is working with specific experts in various fields of forensic sciences. The evidence on which these men were convicted was insufficient, unreliable, and flat out false.

Multiple “jailhouse snitches” were put on the stand and their testimony was considered credible.  

Potential witnesses who worked at the mill were threatened with losing their jobs, etc… if they did not agree to testify to specific information.   

It took two and a half years to bring this case to trial due to the lack of evidence.

Two years after the body was found, a witness, (considered a suspect) suddenly fabricated a “repressed memory” of an incident he claims happened. Even though his testimony was deemed credible, there were no witnesses or murder weapons presented to support it.

That key witness has since recanted. 

All six men were tried together in a single trial. Three of them are named Michael. 

Shortly after he “solved” this case and the men were convicted, the lead detective was fired.  

One of the men was exonerated after five and a half years of incarceration. He has always maintained innocence for himself as well as the other five. After news spread of his release a juror wrote to him stating the confusion they all felt as a jury and admitted it was easier to apply the guilty verdicts to all of them. It took a mere eight hours for the jury to convict all six men.  

Having been in prison for close to twenty years, none of the remaining five men have ever admitted to committing murder and, to this day, they maintain their absolute innocence. 

Additional information about the Monfils case.