Tag Archives: Keith Kutska

Ignoring Looming Threats…

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The gates opened at nine am. Rain clouds persisted as a procession with cars of all shapes, colors and models formed. Thunder rumbled in the distance. But despite the looming threat overhead, the 3rd annual Hotrod Breakout Car Show/Benefit for the Minnesota Innocence Project (IPMN) was about to begin. Adults and children alike were showing up in modest numbers to experience this unique event designed to create awareness about an issue that devastates families across the country. Rain clouds threatened to ruin our activities but the real threat comes from ignoring situations that ruin lives such as the lasting effects caused by wrongful convictions.

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Triplets with baby sister in tow 

A structured program commenced at ten am. Brenda Kutska spoke first. She shared her family’s personal misfortune of dealing with a wrongful conviction. Her Father-in-law, Keith Kutska, was wrongfully convicted along with five other men in 1995 of a murder they did not commit. Keith and four others have been in prison for twenty years. There was no anger or malice, only hope in Brenda’s tone as she spoke of the many years her family has lived with no expectations of ever seeing freedom for Keith. Her ability to stay positive is due to renewed hope fueled by recent legal help for Keith. Each time Brenda paused to catch her breath, a respectful audience waited. Even as they heard about circumstances many of them could not relate to, their hearts were deeply touched. And after hearing about this type of injustice, something they never considered before, they applauded her candidness.

At eleven am it was time for me to try out a new platform-a forty-five minute panel discussion with four exonerees; Audrey Edmunds and Mario Victoria Vasquez from Wisconsin, and Mike Hansen and Koua Fong Lee from Minnesota. Julie Jonas, legal director for the IPMN would join me in introducing our exonerees, along with giving us a sense of what her organization does. There were a few sprinkles of rain in the air, but we proceeded as planned.

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Joan Treppa, exonerees Audrey Edmunds (11)*, Mario Victoria Vasquez (17)*, Mike Hansen (6)*, Koua Fong Lee (3)* and IPMN director Julie Jonas 

Julie introduced Mike and Koua; two exonerees whose cases she had personally worked on. She quickly summed up the lengthy legal processes to free them. I introduced Audrey and Mario. I shared their circumstances and how we had met. We touched on the experiences of all four; the initial crime they were accused of, life in prison, how they found help and what their lives are like now. There was laughter and sadness. There were pleas to stay cognizant that these injustices exists and of the importance of supporting organizations like the Innocence Project. Before long, the clouds dispersed and the sun appeared.

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Exonerees Mario Vasquez and Koua Fong Lee 

Following the discussion at approximately 11:55, something unexpected happened. I was leaving the stage when a gentleman approached. He and his wife had been driving by on the highway when they spotted our event. They felt compelled to stop. The husband presented me with a challenge to match all donations raised by 12:15 up to $1,000! He asked that I make an immediate announcement. I signaled to Chuck, our DJ, to pause the music. As I waited I wondered if we’d come close to collecting that amount or if we would lose out on this rare opportunity. The crowd was small and I had my doubts. But I made the announcement and hoped for the best.

At 12:15 a handful of us counted; $100…$200…$300…and so on all the way up to $1,000 and then some! We had done it and this couple assured us they would be sending a check. Although they wanted to remain anonymous, we couldn’t help but gather around to thank them for their generosity.

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Exoneree Mike Hansen with girlfriend Shaylee and son Keegan 

Still excited about our great fortune, I prepared for the second and final panel discussion at one pm with Attorney Steve Kaplan and Mike ‘Pie’ Piaskowski. They discussed the Wisconsin Monfils case. Mike Pie is the only one of six co-defendants (including the previously mentioned Keith Kutska) to be exonerated. Steve has been actively pursuing freedom for Keith for the past two+ years. At the last minute I asked my good friend and colleague, Johnny Johnson, to join us for this discussion because he is the retired private investigator who aided in compelling Steve to take on this case. I gave a quick case summary and proceeded with the discussion. Mike Pie shared his personal experience as the accused. Steve talked about the legal process of representing Keith. Johnny shared his viewpoint as an outside investigator and explained the proper techniques of interpreting evidence, conducting an investigation, and his personal observations about this case. Steve also discussed the recent hearing for Keith in July of 2015 and what to expect in the coming months.

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Joan Treppa, Steve Kaplan, exoneree Mike Piaskowski (5.5)* and Johnny Johnson 

Both panel discussions were informative and eye-opening for those who gathered to listen. Both elicited reactions of dismay in regards to our judicial system and empathy towards the victims present that day. I felt that what we were doing was making a difference and helping the victims heal just a little bit more by affording them this opportunity.

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Exoneree Mario Victoria Vasquez with Julie Jonas and her children Sarah and Sam 

Amenities included two food vendors and Jeff Lee of ‘Art For You’. Jeff promised to donate 15% of his earnings that day to our cause. He sold four pictures. Chuck Brost, our DJ for ‘Tunes To Go’, was amazing as always.

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Tater Boss Tater Tots

I am pleased to report I received checks from both the couple and from Jeff Lee. I had also received additional personal checks in the mail prior to and after the show. We raised a grand total of $3,080.50 which exceeded last year’s total. We are thankful to General Manager, Sue Stang, of Route 65 Classics (which will be renamed Unique Classics on 65 as of September 1, 2015) for allowing us free access to their facility.

The show ended with numerous awards for the best cars. Plaques and trophies were courtesy of friends, Pat and Rosemary Bonnett. They were handed out by Audrey Edmunds and Mario Victoria Vasquez. To truly appreciate this incredible experience you’ll have to come to next year’s show. I hope to see you then…

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Best in Show Award

* ( ) Total years of sentence each exoneree served.

           

                                                

Riding the Freedom Train…

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What promises to be an historic evidentiary hearing starts in four days on Wednesday July 8th, 2015 at the Brown County Courthouse in Green Bay, Wisconsin. I’m reposting this blog as a reminder of the noble efforts involved in bringing it thus far. On this U.S. Independence Day may we see its meaning come to fruition in a slightly different context…

Also at the end of this posting are two recent news stories from the Green Bay area that aired in the past week in anticipation of this hearing.

Original Post:

All aboard! Hop on to the freedom train! We’re on a roll! Motions to request an evidentiary hearing for one of our men have been filed. Time for the wheels of justice to start spinning in regard to the two decades old Green Bay, Wisconsin wrongful conviction case.

Thinking back to what seems like eons ago, my mind conjures images of sitting in my family room with my investigative expert friend and colleague, Johnny Johnson. Often we’d chastise ourselves over some failed plan of attack or the fact that we had absolutely nothing in the works to help bring justice to these men. Now, after many downed cups of green tea, legal actions have refueled our enthusiasm. We used to say, “What the hell are we going to do now?” or “Who in Heaven’s name are we going to approach?” Now our thoughts have evolved into, “Wow, can you believe how far this has come?” or “What’s on the docket for today?” We will never forget how we arrived at this juncture. We came on board at a time when all hope was gone. We didn’t know how this adventure would play out. We only knew that together we were going to make something positive happen for these men and their families.

Our determination will never bring back the time lost to these victims or lessen the devastation that has followed. But what has transpired in a relatively short period of time is viewed as a miracle. When I commended our lead attorney, Steve Kaplan on a job well done in a recent email, his response was one of reflection. He stated, “Nothing happens without the efforts and commitment of everyone.” Johnny and I do our best to illustrate that wisdom on this path to truth and justice. 

The latest advocates to join us are Ted Haller, an in-depth news reporter/attorney, and his conscientious and thoughtful cameraman, Josh Grenier. Both have provided a public platform that will carry this story far and wide. They invested an enormous amount of time and energy into their amazing news story which aired on April 26, 2015 on KMSP-TV in the Twin Cities. 

We also just learned that an evidentiary hearing has been granted for Keith Kutska. His three-day hearing is scheduled to start on July 8, 2015 in Brown County (Green Bay, Wisconsin). Steve Kaplan will be there to act as Keith’s lead legal counsel and you can be sure a whole trainload of us will be there to support him. I cannot tell you how many times we’ve hoped for this day. The law firm will finally be able to share the evidence that supports the innocence of these men. For Keith Kutska, Rey Moore, Mike Hirn, Mike Johnson, Dale Basten and finally Mike Piaskowski (exonerated 2001), having the truth revealed about what really happened in this egregious case is long overdue. People can say or feel however they want about this controversial case but for the rest of us, nothing can ever compare to the satisfaction we’ve received in knowing we had a hand in the overall series of events. The wealth of emotions felt in our hearts as freedom moves forward is indescribable.

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‘Hope’ acrylic painting by artist/writer, Jared Manninen. Painted for and given to exoneree Mike Piaskowski in 2010 

Fox 11 Green Bay

Green Bay Press-Gazette

The men are hopeful but anxious. My letters to them reiterate the idea that we cannot have come this far only to fail now. My husband Mike and I will be attending the hearing. The plan is to take notes and summarize the entire proceedings via my blog.

Stay tuned…

A Convoluted Process…

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My good friend and partner, Johnny Johnson, also a retired crime scene expert, openly states, “It is my belief that we have the best system in the world because of our ability to go back and fix what is broken.” His faith rests with a dominance of ethics over power and competitiveness to win. He believes that those in power who continue to abuse the system will have no choice but to comply to set standards or lose integrity altogether. Observing the system from my vantage point of citizen advocate for the wrongfully convicted, albeit with an accelerated education of the absolute worst and best case scenarios, I hope he’s right.

As citizens it is our right to be granted fair and unbiased representation and characterization. But in many cases the obligation on the side of the courts to provide this has become lax therefore, a grave concern. Corruption seems to be rampant and I’m no longer blinded to this reality within a system run by fallible human beings. I no longer assume the intentions of the authorities are to maintain integrity. But to be fair, I’ve also seen within the same system, a side of humanity that is made up of people who value lives and do their best to maintain dignity and decency for both their clients, and the law. How does one become corrupt? Why do they think unethical behavior is acceptable? How do they manage to get away with it? My final question as I throw my hands in the air is, why has it taken so long to acknowledge that this problem is real and that it needs fixing?

The good news according to the National Registry of Exonerations is that sixty-seven of the 125 exonerations from last year resulted from the cooperation of both former and current law enforcement officials. This is partly due to the advancements in science and recent laws instituting new legal practices such as police lineups. The emergence of conviction integrity units based in the offices of prosecutors across the country has also contributed to this occurrence. I am encouraged by the likelihood that exoneration numbers will continue to rise. The more time and energy we devote to studying and reversing wrongful convictions, the closer we will come to fixing our tarnished system.

For close to six years Johnny and I have witnessed the convoluted process of reversing a wrongful conviction close up, which has been an uphill battle every step of the way. The process is laboriously slow, taking much more effort to undo what was so easily concocted. Sadly, the opposition resists even when new and damning details emerge that disprove their theories. At our current juncture in the Monfils case as we observe the legal process from the sidelines and see how the legal wheels spin, we sympathize with how difficult it is to the victims who are more intimately involved. However, even though we’ve a ways to go yet, I’m optimistic for a suitable and just ending.

On March 24, 2015, a third and final response was filed in the Monfils case by the law firm. There’s a conference call scheduled for April 15th between the legal team and the assigned judge to discuss the additional findings and what the next move will be. Only time will tell whether a hearing will be granted to decide if a new trial is warranted.

Here is the link to the legal brief, which is fifty-nine pages long. I find the most disturbing aspect on pages 23-25. I draw the line at the blatant manipulation and the terrorizing of young children, five and seven years old, in a desperate attempt to convict innocent men!

A related news story appeared on the evening news on March 31st in Green Bay. It should have been about the filing but is overshadowed by a lesser story about Keith Kutska’s parole eligibility on April 1st, 2015. It leaves out a major element; the fact that Kutska is being represented for free by the highly respected Minneapolis law firm of Fredrikson&Byron; the firm that has been filing these motions. The story lacks details from the brief that were absent from the original trial and most certainly would have compelled the jury to find these men innocent. For instance, they didn’t relay how David Weiner, a key witness, was given a reduced sentence for his false testimony, or that Brian Kellner, a second key witness, was threatened with losing his children if he did not cooperate with the authorities. Nothing was disclosed to the viewers about why the theory of suicide is more plausible then the murder theory, or how the jury never heard about the possibility of suicide. The story addresses the coroner’s findings that the injuries on the body reveal a beating that had taken place. But it never weighs in on the fact that the body was immersed inside the vat near an impeller blade for upwards of thirty-six hours, that it was discolored, bloated and in an advanced state of decomposition. It never suggests the improbability of the coroner’s ability to determine the cause of death.

Michael Piaskowski exonerated in 2001

Michael Piaskowski exonerated and released on April 3, 2001  

Frustration emerges when these stories briefly state that Michael Piaskowski was exonerated of this crime by a federal judge but never offers an explanation of why. I say let’s delve into that circumstance. Let’s disclose those details. These men were all tried together. The jury was warned that all evidence does not pertain to all of the men. Is it realistic to think that over a month’s time they could keep all of the evidence straight? Obvious to me is the confusion experienced by each of the jurors and that this was the sole intent in convicting these men.