Cristhian Bahena-Rivera: Iowa: False confession case; The illegal alien accused of murdering 20-year-old college student Mollie Tibbetts in Brooklyn, Iowa, has been granted $3,200 in state taxpayer funds for an expert witness in the upcoming murder trial, Breitbart, reporter John Binder, reports...(See also Des Moines Register story below)..."Benahena Rivera requested authority of $3,200 in public funds to use the New York expert, Brian Leslie, who the defendant's attorneys said specializes in interrogation techniques and analytical investigative methods. The state did not resist the request. Bahena Rivera's attorneys, Chad and Jennifer Frese, have called the interrogation a "marathon interview." Bahena Rivera fell asleep twice at the sheriff's office after having worked a full day at the farm, they said."
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: This Blog is interested in false confessions because of the disturbing number of exonerations in the USA, Canada and multiple other jurisdictions throughout the world, where, in the absence of incriminating forensic evidence the conviction is based on self-incrimination – and because of the growing body of scientific research showing how vulnerable suspects are to widely used interrogation methods such as the notorious ‘Reid Technique.’
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog:
PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "Bahena-Rivera has been granted $3,200 in state taxpayer money by 8th
Judicial District Judge Joel Yates this week that will pay for an expert
witness to help the illegal alien fight the murder charge, according to the Gazette.The illegal alien, Yates said in his decision, qualifies for taxpayer-funded stipends to fight the murder charge, the Gazette reported, and the accused killer’s defense team is expected to ask for more taxpayer money before the trial: Lawyers for Cristhian Bahena Rivera, 24, who is charged with first-degree murder, said the stipend was needed to hire a forensic expert with Criminal Case Consultants in Buffalo, N.Y.
The expert can provide insight on interrogation techniques and
analytical investigative methods given the “length, context, language
barriers and other factors involved in the police interrogation” of
Rivera, Chase Frese, Rivera’s lawyer, said in the motion."
STORY: "Illegal Alien Accused of Murdering Mollie Tibbetts Granted $3.2K in Taxpayer Money for Expert Witness," by reporter John Binder, published by Breitbart on March 20, 2019.
SUB-HEADING: "The illegal alien accused of murdering 20-year-old college student Mollie Tibbetts in Brooklyn, Iowa, has been granted $3,200 in state taxpayer funds for an expert witness in the upcoming murder trial."
GIST: "In August 2018, Cristhian Bahena-Rivera, an illegal alien from Mexico, was charged with
Tibbetts’ murder after police said he admitted to confronting and
chasing down the young woman. Tibbetts’ body was found in a cornfield in
Poweshiek County after a statewide search for her. The illegal alien
lived in a region of Iowa that was surrounded by sanctuary cities, as
Breitbart News noted, and worked on a dairy farm using a stolen ID and Social Security card after allegedly crossing the U.S.-Mexico border as a child. Bahena-Rivera has been granted $3,200 in state taxpayer money by 8th
Judicial District Judge Joel Yates this week that will pay for an expert
witness to help the illegal alien fight the murder charge, according to the Gazette.The illegal alien, Yates said in his decision, qualifies for taxpayer-funded stipends to fight the murder charge, the Gazette reported, and the accused killer’s defense team is expected to ask for more taxpayer money before the trial: Lawyers for Cristhian Bahena Rivera, 24, who is charged with first-degree murder, said the stipend was needed to hire a forensic expert with Criminal Case Consultants in Buffalo, N.Y.
The expert can provide insight on interrogation techniques and
analytical investigative methods given the “length, context, language
barriers and other factors involved in the police interrogation” of
Rivera, Chase Frese, Rivera’s lawyer, said in the motion. [Emphasis
added]The stipend is required for the expert to begin looking into these issues but it doesn’t cover costs of testimony at trial or travel expenses, Frese, in motion, said. The defense will make separate requests for those funds if necessary. [Emphasis added] Eighth Judicial District Judge Joel Yates
approved the stipend Tuesday, saying a financial affidavit filed with
the court shows Rivera is indigent and qualifies for public funds,
which will be paid by the state. If additional funds are needed, the
defense will have to obtain court approval, he added. [Emphasis added] This is the latest request by Bahena-Rivera’s defense team for public
funds and accommodations for the illegal alien in the murder trial.
This month, Bahena-Rivera asked that his murder confession be thrown out as evidence, claiming he was not read his Miranda rights by police at the time. In its farthest reaching request, the illegal alien’s defense team said the jury selection pool should be moved out of Poweshiek County —
where the alleged murder occurred — because the area is home to too many
white Americans, Breitbart News reported.
Instead, Bahena-Rivera wants the jury selection moved to a neighboring
county with more Hispanic Americans, claiming that a majority-white
county is unfair. Before the jury selection request, the illegal alien’s attorneys said Bahena-Rivera had a “constitutional right” to receive $5,000 in state taxpayer money to hire an independent investigative team to fight the murder charge. According to prosecutors, Bahena-Rivera was the last person who saw
Tibbetts jogging on the evening of July 18, 2018, in Brooklyn, Iowa,
security camera footage reveals. That is the night Tibbetts went
missing. The illegal alien told police that Tibbetts was jogging when he saw
her, according to prosecutors. That is when he said he approached
Tibbetts and started talking to her. After Tibbetts told Bahena-Rivera
that she would call the police if he did not stop following her, the
illegal alien allegedly chased her and says he “blacked out” after this. Police believe Bahena-Rivera stabbed Tibbetts to death, then drove to
a cornfield where prosecutors say Bahena-Rivera placed cornstalks over
her to hide her body. The illegal alien has been held on a $5 million
bond, and the murder trial is set for September."
Read Des Moines Register story ' Prosecutor: Mollie Tibbetts murder suspect never mentionned language barrier in interview," by reporter Luke Nozicka, published on March 20, 2019, at the link below: "The farmhand accused of killing
University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts never indicated he did not
understand questions during his lengthy interview with investigators, prosecutors say.
In
a court filing Wednesday, the Iowa Attorney General's Office disputed
that there was a language barrier between Cristhian Bahena Rivera, 24,
and the Spanish-speaking officers who interviewed him for 12 hours
before he was charged with murder. The
statement came in a response to Bahena Rivera's request for public funds
to be used for an expert in interrogation methods. Prosecutors said
they understand the need for the expert but disagreed with his
assertion he required one because of the interview's "length, context,
language barriers and other factors." Scott
Brown, an assistant attorney general, said prosecutors were not aware
of any "significant" language barrier because officers talking with
Bahena Rivera at Yarrabee Farms in Brooklyn, where he worked, used an
interpreter. Officers who then conducted a "large
majority" of Bahena Rivera's interview at the Poweshiek County Sheriff’s
Office in Montezuma were fluent in Spanish, Brown wrote. The lead
officer's first language is Spanish, he said. Bahena
Rivera requested authority of $3,200 in public funds to use the New
York expert, Brian Leslie, who the defendant's attorneys said
specializes in interrogation techniques and analytical investigative
methods. The state did not resist the request.
Bahena
Rivera's attorneys, Chad and Jennifer Frese, have called the
interrogation a "marathon interview." Bahena Rivera fell asleep twice at
the sheriff's office after having worked a full day at the farm, they
said. In
their response, state prosecutors said Bahena Rivera was allowed to use
his cell phone for a "large portion" of the interview, during which he
was given food and drink. Frequent breaks were also taken, according to
the attorney general's office. After the
interview, Bahena Rivera, an undocumented immigrant, led officers to
Tibbetts' body, which was hidden in a Poweshiek County cornfield,
authorities said. Bahena Rivera's attorneys dispute that
characterization but have declined to elaborate. Bahena
Rivera was charged with first-degree murder in the stabbing death
of Tibbetts, 20, after he took investigators to her remains Aug. 21,
authorities said. He confessed to abducting Tibbetts while she was on a
run July 18 outside of her hometown of Brooklyn, investigators said. The month-long search for Tibbetts gained national and international attention. Earlier this month, Bahena Rivera's lawyers filed a motion to suppress his interview, arguing he was not told about his right to an attorney or his right to decline to cooperate beforehand. They argued any confession he made was therefore involuntary. Chad Frese
told the Des Moines Register his client was "Mirandized" — shorthand in
the legal profession for formally explaining a suspect's rights, under
the U.S. Supreme Court decision Miranda v. Arizona — nine to 10 hours
into the interview. A hearing on the issue has been set for June. His attorneys also requested his trial be moved out of Poweshiek County and into a county with more minority representation. Bahena Rivera's trial is set to begin in September. If convicted, he will be sentenced to life in prison without parole." The farmhand accused of killing
University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts never indicated he did not
understand questions during his lengthy interview with investigators, prosecutors say. In
a court filing Wednesday, the Iowa Attorney General's Office disputed
that there was a language barrier between Cristhian Bahena Rivera, 24,
and the Spanish-speaking officers who interviewed him for 12 hours
before he was charged with murder. The
statement came in a response to Bahena Rivera's request for public funds
to be used for an expert in interrogation methods. Prosecutors said
they understand the need for the expert but disagreed with his
assertion he required one because of the interview's "length, context,
language barriers and other factors." Scott
Brown, an assistant attorney general, said prosecutors were not aware
of any "significant" language barrier because officers talking with
Bahena Rivera at Yarrabee Farms in Brooklyn, where he worked, used an
interpreter. Officers who then conducted a "large
majority" of Bahena Rivera's interview at the Poweshiek County Sheriff’s
Office in Montezuma were fluent in Spanish, Brown wrote. The lead
officer's first language is Spanish, he said. Bahena
Rivera requested authority of $3,200 in public funds to use the New
York expert, Brian Leslie, who the defendant's attorneys said
specializes in interrogation techniques and analytical investigative
methods. The state did not resist the request. Bahena
Rivera's attorneys, Chad and Jennifer Frese, have called the
interrogation a "marathon interview." Bahena Rivera fell asleep twice at
the sheriff's office after having worked a full day at the farm, they
said. In
their response, state prosecutors said Bahena Rivera was allowed to use
his cell phone for a "large portion" of the interview, during which he
was given food and drink. Frequent breaks were also taken, according to
the attorney general's office. After the
interview, Bahena Rivera, an undocumented immigrant, led officers to
Tibbetts' body, which was hidden in a Poweshiek County cornfield,
authorities said. Bahena Rivera's attorneys dispute that
characterization but have declined to elaborate. Bahena
Rivera was charged with first-degree murder in the stabbing death
of Tibbetts, 20, after he took investigators to her remains Aug. 21,
authorities said. He confessed to abducting Tibbetts while she was on a
run July 18 outside of her hometown of Brooklyn, investigators said. The month-long search for Tibbetts gained national and international attention. Earlier this month, Bahena Rivera's lawyers filed a motion to suppress his interview, arguing he was not told about his right to an attorney or his right to decline to cooperate beforehand. They argued any confession he made was therefore involuntary. Chad Frese
told the Des Moines Register his client was "Mirandized" — shorthand in
the legal profession for formally explaining a suspect's rights, under
the U.S. Supreme Court decision Miranda v. Arizona — nine to 10 hours
into the interview. A hearing on the issue has been set for June. His attorneys also requested his trial be moved out of Poweshiek County and into a county with more minority representation. Bahena Rivera's trial is set to begin in September. If convicted, he will be sentenced to life in prison without parole."
PUBLISHER'S
NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the
Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my
previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put
considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles
Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's
forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic"
section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles
Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith. Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at: http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog.
Two Blogs Now: The Charles Smith Blog; The Selfless Warriors Blog: I created the Charles Smith Blog in 2007 after I retired from The Toronto Star to permit me to keep digging into the story of the flawed pathologist and the harm he had done to so many innocent parents and caregivers, and to Ontario’s criminal justice system. Since then it has taken new directions, including examinations of other flawed pathologists, flawed pathology, and flawed science and technology which has marred the quality of justice in courtrooms around the world. The heart of the Blog is my approach to following cases which raise issues in all of these areas - especially those involving the death penalty. I have dedicated 'The Selfless Warrior Blog’ (soon to appear) to those exceptional individuals who have been ripped out of their ordinary lives by their inability to stand by in the face of a glaring miscarriage of justice. They are my ’Selfless Warriors.’ Enjoy!
