PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "U.S. District Judge Claria Horn Boom has denied Harwood’s motion to dismiss the suit, saying King had presented sufficient proof that Harwood knowingly or recklessly omitted and falsified key evidence to obtain her conviction. To get a search warrant for King’s home, for example, Boom wrote in an April 1 opinion, Harwood omitted that King weighed 108 pounds and had only one leg and no prosthetic. That, Boom said, "obviously would make it less likely that she would be able to kill” Kyle Deanie Breeden in 1998 and then, as Harwood claimed, "tie him up, drag his body out of the house to an unknown car, and drive 40 miles to dump his body in the Kentucky River." Boom also found Harwood falsely suggested that a pair of bullets found in the floor of King’s home were the ones that killed Breeden when the detective knew the bullets never left the victim's body."
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PASSAGE TWO OF THE DAY: "Boom said Harwood also claimed that an industrial solvent was used to clean King's floor, where Breeden allegedly was killed, knowing that tests found no traces of cleaning materials. According to the opinion, Harwood also falsely suggested there was evidence of blood on two bullets found in her flooring, knowing that a test required to confirm the presence of blood had not been conducted. Boom said Harwood also falsely suggested that the gun used to kill Breeden matched one owned by King. And the judge said Harwood’s claim that King could offer no excuse or reason that portions of her kitchen floor were missing was “simply false.”
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STORY: "Susan Jean King lawsuit against KSP trooper will go forward," by Investigative, Judice, Courts Reporter Andrew Wolfson, published by The Louisville Courier Journal on April 9, 2020.
SUB-HEADING: "She says a Kentucky State Trooper framed her for murder. Now a jury will hear her lawsuit."
GIST: "Susan Jean King, the one-legged woman who has insisted that a corrupt Kentucky State Police detective framed her for murder, may present her case for malicious prosecution to a jury.
King, who spent nearly seven years behind bars before she was exonerated when another man confessed to the killing, sued then-Trooper Todd Harwood and other defendants in 2015.
U.S. District Judge Claria Horn Boom has denied Harwood’s motion to dismiss the suit, saying King had presented sufficient proof that Harwood knowingly or recklessly omitted and falsified key evidence to obtain her conviction.
To get a search warrant for King’s home, for example, Boom wrote in an April 1 opinion, Harwood omitted that King weighed 108 pounds and had only one leg and no prosthetic. That, Boom said, "obviously would make it less likely that she would be able to kill” Kyle Deanie Breeden in 1998 and then, as Harwood claimed, "tie him up, drag his body out of the house to an unknown car, and drive 40 miles to dump his body in the Kentucky River."
Boom also found Harwood falsely suggested that a pair of bullets found in the floor of King’s home were the ones that killed Breeden when the detective knew the bullets never left the victim's body.
The suit, which Harwood and KSP have fought for years to dismiss, has been an embarrassment for both state police and the Louisville Metro Police Department. VIn 2009, KSP Commissioner Rodney Brewer, who was rehired by Gov. Andy Beshear in January, gave Harwood a "Commissioner’s commendation" for his "outstanding achievement in solving Breeden's murder."
And in 2014, Louisville Metro was forced to pay $450,000 to Detective Barron Morgan to settle his allegations that he was transferred to the graveyard shift as punishment for reporting the confession to the Kentucky Innocence Project, which was fighting to free King from prison.
Morgan claimed he was punished by Chief Steve Conrad — a close friend of Brewer — for allegedly meddling in the KSP’s case. Brewer said in a recent email that he can't talk about the case because of the pending lawsuit.
But testifying in court in 2014 he said he still "absolutely" believed Harwood deserved the commendation, which stated that the detective’s work was “in keeping with the highest tradition of the Kentucky State Police.”
Brewer was “out of pocket” Thursday, said Shawna Spicer, KSP’s general counsel. She said she expects a trial date for the suit to be set soon.
Harwood retired in 2017 while facing a department charge of unspecified “conduct unbecoming,” according to records obtained under the Kentucky Open Records Act. King’s attorney, Thomas Clay, said in an interview that Harwood was accused of sexual misconduct with a dispatcher.
Harwood, who was hired last year by Anthem as its security coordinator for Kentucky and Tennessee, according to his online profile, did not respond to a request for comment. His attorneys said he denies King’s allegations and that they would have no additional comment.
Clay said he was pleased that Boom allowed the lawsuit to continue on the accusation of malicious prosecution, though the judge dismissed several other counts.
U.S. District Judge Claria Horn Boom has denied Harwood’s motion to dismiss the suit, saying King had presented sufficient proof that Harwood knowingly or recklessly omitted and falsified key evidence to obtain her conviction.
To get a search warrant for King’s home, for example, Boom wrote in an April 1 opinion, Harwood omitted that King weighed 108 pounds and had only one leg and no prosthetic. That, Boom said, "obviously would make it less likely that she would be able to kill” Kyle Deanie Breeden in 1998 and then, as Harwood claimed, "tie him up, drag his body out of the house to an unknown car, and drive 40 miles to dump his body in the Kentucky River."
Boom also found Harwood falsely suggested that a pair of bullets found in the floor of King’s home were the ones that killed Breeden when the detective knew the bullets never left the victim's body.
The suit, which Harwood and KSP have fought for years to dismiss, has been an embarrassment for both state police and the Louisville Metro Police Department. VIn 2009, KSP Commissioner Rodney Brewer, who was rehired by Gov. Andy Beshear in January, gave Harwood a "Commissioner’s commendation" for his "outstanding achievement in solving Breeden's murder."
And in 2014, Louisville Metro was forced to pay $450,000 to Detective Barron Morgan to settle his allegations that he was transferred to the graveyard shift as punishment for reporting the confession to the Kentucky Innocence Project, which was fighting to free King from prison.
Morgan claimed he was punished by Chief Steve Conrad — a close friend of Brewer — for allegedly meddling in the KSP’s case. Brewer said in a recent email that he can't talk about the case because of the pending lawsuit.
But testifying in court in 2014 he said he still "absolutely" believed Harwood deserved the commendation, which stated that the detective’s work was “in keeping with the highest tradition of the Kentucky State Police.”
Brewer was “out of pocket” Thursday, said Shawna Spicer, KSP’s general counsel. She said she expects a trial date for the suit to be set soon.
Harwood retired in 2017 while facing a department charge of unspecified “conduct unbecoming,” according to records obtained under the Kentucky Open Records Act. King’s attorney, Thomas Clay, said in an interview that Harwood was accused of sexual misconduct with a dispatcher.
Harwood, who was hired last year by Anthem as its security coordinator for Kentucky and Tennessee, according to his online profile, did not respond to a request for comment. His attorneys said he denies King’s allegations and that they would have no additional comment.
Clay said he was pleased that Boom allowed the lawsuit to continue on the accusation of malicious prosecution, though the judge dismissed several other counts.
“It’s a win,” Clay said. “We are still in court.” As described in Boom’s opinion, the long-running case began when Breeden’s body was found on Nov. 5, 1998, in the Kentucky River.
] At least six KSP detectives investigated the murder and developed a list of 27 possible suspects.
They included King because she and Breeden had a relationship in which they fought and took out protective orders against each other. Breeden’s feet were found tied with a guitar amplifier cable, and King played guitar
But the detectives amassed so little evidence implicating her that they were unable to get a judge to authorize a search warrant for her home, Boom noted.
The case sat cold for nearly seven years — until Harwood was assigned to investigate, and in 21 days, he decided King was the culprit.
He won a warrant that his colleagues previously were denied, and subsequently a warrant for King's arrest.
But Boom said Harwood omitted key facts — including that she didn’t own a car and her “small stature and physical disability” (King had a leg amputated at the hip after a car accident) — which the judge found “squarely relevant” to the likelihood that she would be able to dispose of the body as Harwood claimed.
Boom said Harwood also claimed that an industrial solvent was used to clean King's floor, where Breeden allegedly was killed, knowing that tests found no traces of cleaning materials.
According to the opinion, Harwood also falsely suggested there was evidence of blood on two bullets found in her flooring, knowing that a test required to confirm the presence of blood had not been conducted.
Boom said Harwood also falsely suggested that the gun used to kill Breeden matched one owned by King.
And the judge said Harwood’s claim that King could offer no excuse or reason that portions of her kitchen floor were missing was “simply false.”
Indicted for murder and informed by her lawyer that she might face the death penalty if convicted, King in 2008 maintained her innocence but took a plea bargain to manslaughter and a 10-year sentence.
She was still behind bars four years later when a serial murderer named Richard Jarrell on May 4, 2012, confessed to Morgan that he had killed Breeden and told another Louisville detective details about the murder that hadn’t been reported to the media.
When Harwood came to the Jefferson County jail to interview Jarrell himself, Harwood claimed Jarrell recanted the confession.
But Harwood said the digital device on which he recorded Jarrell’s revised statement was later stolen from a locked KSP post.
The Kentucky Court of Appeals ultimately reversed King’s conviction, calling it an “egregious violation” of justice.
The court said with “reasonable certainty” the result would have been different if Jarrell’s confession had been known when King was charged.
Spencer County prosecutors dismissed the charges against her, and no one has been prosecuted for Breeden’s murder."
The entire story can be read at:
https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/crime/2020/04/09/exexonerated-womans-suit-continues-vs-ksp-trooperonerated-womans-suit-continues-vs-ksp-trooper/5124036002/
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;
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FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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