Tag Archives: DNA

Wait a Cotton Pickin’ Minute! Pt 1

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On the evening of Thursday, November 6th, 2014, my husband Mike and I attended a Benefit for Innocence Gala in Downtown Minneapolis-the largest fundraiser of the year for the Innocence Project of Minnesota (IPMN). We were excited to be going for the third year in a row. We rounded up the usual friends and off we went. We look forward to the meaningful connections we make with compassionate people, truly supportive of those who’ve been wrongfully convicted. If ever you believe that life has dealt you a bad hand, you must go to one of these events. They take place across the country. We always leave filled with renewed hope and encouragement that we as a society can promote change within our communities. There’s no way to describe the empowerment that comes with being involved with this organization.

This year’s Gala surpassed our expectations in so many ways. We dined with two memorable young men-Oliver and Zachary. These intelligent best friends recently put together an award winning documentary about a historic Minnesota wrongful conviction murder case from 1859. It involved a woman named Anne Bilansky who was charged with murdering her husband. She was put to death despite a lack of credible evidence. The ten-minute documentary is an overview of the case. It addresses the ethics of the death penalty and the major effect it had on litigation regarding this barbaric practice. As my husband and I watched the film days later, we were amazed at the amount of research these young men did and how well they evaluated the case! They are talented and most likely headed for a great career in film. They stated they are already planning their next one. Here’s the link to this amazing documentary.

I also met the emcee for this Gala, Ted Haller. My good friend, Johnny, made the introductions. “Ted is an attorney/journalist who does feature stories for KMSP Fox 9 news here in Minneapolis,” Johnny said. We both were encouraged by Ted’s enthusiasm and concern in regard to the wrongful conviction issue because we were aware of how many in the media shy away from the controversial topic. We had a great conversation and I was thrilled when Ted talked about the prospect of telling Johnny’s and my story. Ted was, at that time, reading the recent 152-page motion filed by the Minneapolis law firm of Fredrikson & Byron, PA in regard to the wrongful convictions of our men in Wisconsin! He was intrigued.

This year I was invited to participate in the VIP reception by Liz Loeb-the new Executive Director of the IPMN. This meant I was among a few given the opportunity to meet the keynote speaker for the evening in a more intimate setting. This was a first for me and quite an honor. Ted generously offered to make the introductions. When Ted uttered my name I was delighted to hear her response, “Joan, I’ve heard all about you!”

She and I found lots of common ground. She’s an exceptional and inspiring person who exudes sincerity and love. So down to earth, her story is fascinating and brings insight to a major pitfall of wrongful convictions; eyewitness identification.

This courageous woman had been a victim of a horrible rape in 1984. She was 100% sure of the identity of her assailant. But there’d be a new twist to her life years later when she learned that DNA had ruled this assailant out…

To be continued…

A Tall Order to Emulate…

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On a recommendation from an exoneree friend, Michael Piaskowski, my husband Mike and I invited a distinguished stranger into our home in October of 2012. We were planning to attend a Benefit for Innocence in Downtown Minneapolis and it was suggested that we invite this exoneree. I looked into his case profile and found these details…

In June of 1989, a woman was kidnapped from her home, raped several times and abandoned along the side of a road in Bluff Siding, Wisconsin. Fred Saecker who was 6’3” tall and very thin with a full head of hair at the time, DID NOT fit the victim’s description of the attacker at all. However, since he was in the victim’s neighborhood around the time of the attack and (according to the summary I read) had been drinking they focused their attention on him. He was charged with burglary, second degree sexual assault and kidnapping. At trial a truck driver testified that he saw Mr. Saecker wearing a blood stained T-shirt and a forensic analyst testified that pubic hairs found on the victim’s body were “microscopically similar” to his.

Fred Saecker was convicted and sentenced to 15 years in prison. He would serve seven years of that sentence before DNA evidence would absolve him of the crime. I must clarify that last statement because of its significance. Four years into his sentence DNA proved his innocence but it took another three years for the authorities to sanction his release! Read on…

In 1993, Fred’s Mother paid for DNA testing. Although the tests concluded that he could not have possibly been the perpetrator, his request for a new trial was denied until 1996 when the District Attorney finally dismissed all charges based on this DNA evidence…  

Fred arrived at our house after a five-hour drive from Wisconsin on the day of the benefit. He’s tall and thin making him mindful of hitting his head on the tops of doorways and low ceiling lights and fans in our home. He towered over both of us but his demeanor was non-intimidating. In fact, he was soft spoken and thoughtful. He expressed his gratefulness about being invited. Although Mike and I immediately grew fond of him, I also felt nervous. Not because of the accusations against him I believed were false but because I was very naive about this whole exoneree experience and somewhat vague about the willingness of them to revisit past nightmares.

We had time to get acquainted with Fred before friends would arrive prior to the event. So we broached the subject of his wrongful conviction. We knew nothing other than a few details and what our friend Mike Pie had told us about his circumstances. Fred was open and honest about his experience despite this being our first encounter with him. I wondered how it was possible for the authorities to target him despite him not fitting the description of the real perpetrator. I also wondered how they managed to not get a sense of his true nature. Ever since that little chat in our home, we knew that Fred would always be our friend. He has joined us on at least one other occasion and we’ve continued to stay in touch ever since.

I think in many ways, exonerees like Fred remain vulnerable to some degree, due to the lasting effects of their tragedies. They are keen when it comes to defining who is truthful and honest, but for some, the risk of being fooled by those whose intentions are tainted, is ever present. I am mindful of the mission I’ve been given, of the importance of not taking these people for granted, or underestimating their emotional state. These days, I feel much more comfortable when meeting an exoneree for the first time. The humanity I feel by being in the presence of great courage and endurance despite all odds, never goes away.

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

Sometime ago, Fred sent me a thoughtful message stating, “Joan, you are incredible. I really mean that.” As accepting of those words as I am from someone I admire very much, there’s no doubt in my mind that the best deserved accolades go to this gentle giant of a man who stands tall, not only in stature but in the wake of extreme misfortune.

What Is Mine Is Now Also His…

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This month’s featured exoneree is one I met close to eighteen months ago. He’s my son, Jared’s age and was released from prison on my birthday in 2012. That day is now referred to as his day of rebirth so for both of us it holds plenty of meaning. I cannot help but contemplate how vastly different our reasons are for its significance but I am overjoyed to share this special day with such an admirable friend.

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Jared Manninen with exoneree Damon Thibodeaux and girlfriend, Veronika  

Damon Thibodeaux is the 300th person nationwide and the eighteenth from death row to be exonerated by DNA evidence. He spent fifteen years on death row in Angola Prison in Louisiana for the rape and murder of a family member. He was under lock down for twenty-three hours a day in a cell that measured roughly 8×10 feet at one of the toughest maximum security prisons in the United States. Damon’s story is extremely tragic and the circumstances leading to his incarceration are similar to those found in many wrongful convictions.

After being subjected to nine hours of questioning, Damon admitted he had raped and murdered the victim, even though he had not. It was later determined that the confession was the result of police pressure, exhaustion, psychological vulnerability, and fear of the death penalty. Even so, the case against him had been built around that confession despite the discrepancies within his statement and the lack of physical evidence to prove the victim had even been raped.

Damon was also misidentified. A week after the crime, two women identified him in a photo line up as the man they saw pacing and acting nervously on the evening of the murder. They then pointed him out during the trial as the man they had seen. But when Damon’s case was later re-investigated, it was revealed that the women had seen Damon’s photo in the news before police showed them the photo line-up and the date of the sighting turned out to be the day after the body was found when Damon was already in custody.

Damon shows no anger about his false imprisonment. During a news conference Damon stated that, “Being angry would be a waste of time because…I can’t get the sixteen years back. I have to keep focused on where I want to go and hope I can figure out along the way what I want to do. I can’t think about what could have been, but will be.”

Having hosted Damon in our home along with other exonerees, we’ve found that being around them inspires us to be thankful for the freedoms we have. Despite the horrors that Damon endured, we know him as someone who is genuinely kind and compassionate. Right after he was freed he was quiet and reserved. Now he has learned to live, love, and laugh again. Sometimes when I see or think of him, I say a silent prayer of thanks; both for his good fortune and because what happened to him could have easily happened to Jared, given similar circumstances. I was excited when Jared and Damon had the opportunity to get to know each other late last year. What a priceless experience for any mother on her birthday…or any other day.

**Damon was one of a handful of guests Mike and I hosted the evening that his story was featured on the Saturday, March 29, 2014 segment of 48 Hours on CBS.