Frustrated

Yesterday I read that Brendan Dassey (who is the juvenile from Making A Murder) was denied clemency.  If there has ever been a case of a wrongful conviction this is it.  The system is supposed to be fair but somehow there was a huge miscarriage of justice done here in my opinion.  My heart sank when I learned the news.  This poor kid who is now 30 is stuck to life in prison without the possibility of parole until 2048 for a crime he didn’t commit and a confession that was coaxed out of him.  As I understand it his legal avenues have been exhausted and the Governor and a request for commutation of his sentence or Clemency is his only option.  I’m sure you can ask multiple times but much like a conviction at trial I would think that once you get a no your chances of ever hearing a yes are limited. 

I learned today that there were several interrogations that took place but the one that stands out is the last one in which he was coxed to confess.  Apparently they asked him 1500 questions over the course of 3 hours.  Keep in mind he was a juvenile, alone with no parent or attorney and he is intellectually disabled (meaning he doesn’t have full comprehension and understanding).  I think this was a form of torture designed to break him down and they had no plans on letting him out until he said what they wanted him to say, so eventually he broke and just said what they wanted to hear.  I think even an innocent and fully competent adult would eventually breakdown and confess to something they didn’t do given similar circumstances. 

This case echo’s what I learned a few years back.  Never ever under any circumstances talk to the police.  Especially if they read you your Miranda Rights.  You need to have an attorney present.  The more you talk and think you can “explain things” the bigger of a grave your digging for yourself.  When they tell you anything you say can and will be used against you, they aren’t kidding around.  They will flip your words around quick.  Bottom line, keep your mouth shut until you talk with an attorney.  There are NO exceptions.

I pray that there is some relief instore for this kid who is now an adult.  This just breaks my heart.  I feel compelled to write a letter.  I actually had something pretty good worked up but threw it out when I thought you might do more harm than good, which is the last thing I would want.  I feel so helpless and I realize this isn’t my problem but it’s my nature to want to help people.  So instead of doing nothing I figured making a post about it to get it out of my system would be helpful, so here you go.