"Rehmeier determined that Kofoed planted blood evidence to bolster the prosecution of two men originally charged in the 2006 slayings of Murdock farmers Wayne and Sharmon Stock.
Charges later were dropped after overwhelming evidence led to the conviction of two Wisconsin teenagers.
Lefler argued that the blood DNA of Brendan Gonzalez, which Kofoed produced from a Bellevue trash bin, was authentic.
"Ivan Henk said he decapitated his son and put the body of Brendan Gonzalez in a Dumpster," Lefler argued."
REPORTER JOHN FERAK; OMAHO WORLD-HERALD;
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BACKGROUND: (David) Kofoed's work came into question after his 2006 investigation into the slaying of a rural Cass County couple, Wayne and Sharmon Stock. Detectives zeroed in on the couple's nephew and his cousin, but found no physical evidence tying the two to the killings. They managed to get a confession from the nephew, but he retracted it the next day. A day later, Kofoed said he found a drop of one of the victims' blood in a car linked to the suspects that had already been combed over by another forensic investigator. The suspects were charged with murder and jailed for several months before being released because prosecutors determined the confession was unreliable and didn't fit the facts of the case. A man and woman from Wisconsin eventually pleaded guilty to murdering the couple and are serving life prison terms. The FBI began investigating Kofoed after the slain couple's nephew filed a lawsuit alleging civil rights violations. The agency's findings led authorities to charge Kofoed with evidence tampering in April. During his trial, Kofoed blamed the speck of blood found in the car on accidental contamination. But Cass County District Judge Randall Rehmeier said he didn't buy it, and that the evidence showed Kofoed intentionally planted the blood in the car. ..Before issuing his verdict, Rehmeier said there were similarities between that investigation and one in which a man, Ivan Henk, was convicted of murdering his young son, whose body was never found. In both cases, there were confessions by the suspects and a lack of physical evidence to corroborate them until Kofoed found a speck of blood that had previously been overlooked, the judge said. (Associated Press);
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"LINCOLN — The Nebraska Supreme Court heard oral arguments Friday on whether to overturn the evidence-tampering conviction of former Douglas County CSI director David Kofoed," the Omaha World-Herald story by reporter John Ferak published on September 9, 200 under the heading "High court hears Kofoed appeal," begins.
"Steve Lefler, Kofoed’s attorney, asked the high court to return the case to Cass County District Court," the story continues.
"Lefler argued that Cass County District Judge Randall Rehmeier erred by allowing special prosecutor Clarence Mock to present evidence accusing Kofoed of engaging in a pattern of forensic misconduct.
Rehmeier, in convicting Kofoed, said he found "significant similiarities" between Kofoed's work on the Murdock case and on the 2003 murder case of 4-year-old Brendan Gonzalez of Plattsmouth.
Lefler reminded the Supreme Court during the 20-minute hearing that a federal jury had acquitted Kofoed of four federal charges related to Kofoed's handling of evidence in the 2006 slayings of rural Murdock, Neb.
"I know that sounds like sour grapes, but I would like the opportunity for a rubber match," Lefler told the court.
Assistant Nebraska Attorney General James Smith asked the court to reject Lefler's arguments and uphold Rehmeier's March 2010 guilty verdict.
Smith told the court Lefler's arguments amounted to "red herrings" and had nothing to do with the evidence used to convict the former CSI director. Smith said Rehmeier composed an 18-page report to explain his findings of Kofoed's guilt.
Rehmeier determined that Kofoed planted blood evidence to bolster the prosecution of two men originally charged in the 2006 slayings of Murdock farmers Wayne and Sharmon Stock.
Charges later were dropped after overwhelming evidence led to the conviction of two Wisconsin teenagers.
Lefler argued that the blood DNA of Brendan Gonzalez, which Kofoed produced from a Bellevue trash bin, was authentic.
"Ivan Henk said he decapitated his son and put the body of Brendan Gonzalez in a Dumpster," Lefler argued.
Lefler told the Supreme Court that he tried to offer testimony during the trial to rebuff the prosecution's theory. He tried to cite other murder cases where DNA evidence was extracted under extraordinary circumstances, including the Omaha slaying of Amber Harris.
but Rehmeier rejected his request.
Kofoed has remained in custody since June 2010, after being sentenced to 20 to 48 months in prison."
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The story can be found at:
http://www.omaha.com/article/20110909/NEWS97/709099837
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PUBLISHER'S NOTE: 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 accessed at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith
For a breakdown of some of the cases, issues and controversies this Blog is currently following, please turn to:
http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=120008354894645705&postID=8369513443994476774
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; hlevy15@gmail.com;
