PASSAGE OF THE DAY: Defense DNA expert Greg Hampikian reviewed the lab’s procedural manual and testified at the same hearing that under the proper guidelines, Cruz “is definitely excluded.” “Mr. Cruz was not linked to any of the crucial forensic DNA in this case,” Hampikian testified. “It is my view that the jury did not hear this important scientific conclusion and were misled.”
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PASSAGE TWO OF THE DAY: "Compounding the forensic errors, Cruz’s original defense team failed to appropriately challenge the involvement of former Milwaukee Police Detectives Gilbert Hernandez and Katherine Spano, cold-case investigators who took statements from jailhouse informants implicating Cruz, according to post-conviction defense motions. Hernandez was later found liable by a federal jury for fabricating a false confession and coercing witnesses in the wrongful homicide conviction of William Avery, federal court records from the 2015 civil trial show. While the federal jury did not find Spano liable for fabricating evidence in the Avery case, defense attorneys are heavily scrutinizing both detectives’ investigative methods, and Craig ruled that their histories can be explored on cross-examination to test for bias."
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PASSAGE THREE OF THE DAY: "A new trial date is set for September 2026, court records show, and prosecutors have indicated in recent status hearings they are weighing whether to proceed to trial or resolve the case through a plea deal. Prosecutors have not publicly detailed what evidence they expect to rely on at a retrial. "
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STORY: "Beyond the 2000 Highway K homicide of Juanita Zdroik: A family's fight to reclaim mother's legacy."by Denise Lockwood, published on April 28, 2026.
GIST: "Juanita Zdroik was a 39-year-old mother who loved spontaneous trips for tacos and filled her home with rescued animals, including a free-flying bird and a black guinea pig named “Baby,” her children recalled in recent interviews.
But to her children, her defining trait was her fierce, unconditional love.
“She was the one person who loved me more than anything else in the world,” her son, Zachrey Zdroik, said. “It was a mother’s love. I’ve never felt that before. I never have, I never will again.”
For nearly 26 years, the criminal justice system has defined Juanita primarily by her death: as a body discovered in the snow along Racine County’s Highway K in February 2000, according to criminal complaints.
Prosecutors have alleged Miguel A. Cruz killed Juanita, and a Racine County jury convicted him of first-degree intentional homicide in 2021, court records show . Today, her family is fighting to reclaim her memory as Cruz faces a retrial after a judge vacated that conviction.
For Juanita’s children, the unraveling of the case has meant a forced return to their darkest days.
“The legal system is causing us constant trauma at this point,” Zachrey said. “We already have to live with the fact that our mother was murdered brutally outside, on the highway, and now, the fact that the legal system has its problems, we have to relive it all over again.”
Holding Two Truths
Juanita’s daughter, Veronica Castro, remembers her mother as a “hippie” who could walk into any room and effortlessly command attention. This woman was “inappropriate in the best way,” she recalls.
But Juanita’s children are also candid about her vulnerabilities. Her struggles with substance abuse eventually led to eviction, leaving 13-year-old Zachrey to move in with his father shortly before her murder, according to her family. Yet, her children say she never stopped trying to build them up.
“My mom, in her weakest moments, you could say, were her strongest moments as a mother to me,” Zachrey said, recalling how she would openly discuss her mistakes and beg him to do better. “She was putting all the best parts of her in me, and I’ve just been living my life for her.”
Veronica echoed that sentiment, emphasizing the richness of their upbringing despite the instability.
“We didn’t have a lot. We had nothing, and we still had so much,” she said. “We were so fulfilled, even though we were poor.”
Negated Conviction
The family felt a sense of closure in 2021 when a Racine County jury convicted Cruz of first-degree intentional homicide that was quickly negated in August 2025 when Racine County Circuit Judge Scott Craig vacated Cruz’s conviction, citing the ineffective assistance of his trial counsel during an oral ruling from the bench.
The reversal hinges heavily on a retracted forensic conclusion. During the 2021 trial, Wisconsin State Crime Lab analyst Sharon Polakowski told the jury that Cruz’s Y-STR DNA comparison to a mixture found under Juanita’s right-hand fingernails was “inconclusive,” according to trial transcripts.
But during a January 2025 evidentiary hearing, Polakowski admitted error under oath.
“The only thing that makes sense to me is that I used incorrect protocol in the interpretation for the report that was written in 2018,” Polakowski testified at the hearing, according to transcripts. She confirmed on the stand that under the correct standards, Cruz should have been excluded.
Defense DNA expert Greg Hampikian reviewed the lab’s procedural manual and testified at the same hearing that under the proper guidelines, Cruz “is definitely excluded.”
“Mr. Cruz was not linked to any of the crucial forensic DNA in this case,” Hampikian testified. “It is my view that the jury did not hear this important scientific conclusion and were misled.”
Compounding the forensic errors, Cruz’s original defense team failed to appropriately challenge the involvement of former Milwaukee Police Detectives Gilbert Hernandez and Katherine Spano, cold-case investigators who took statements from jailhouse informants implicating Cruz, according to post-conviction defense motions.
Hernandez was later found liable by a federal jury for fabricating a false confession and coercing witnesses in the wrongful homicide conviction of William Avery, federal court records from the 2015 civil trial show.
While the federal jury did not find Spano liable for fabricating evidence in the Avery case, defense attorneys are heavily scrutinizing both detectives’ investigative methods, and Craig ruled that their histories can be explored on cross-examination to test for bias.
Living in Limbo
A new trial date is set for September 2026, court records show, and prosecutors have indicated in recent status hearings they are weighing whether to proceed to trial or resolve the case through a plea deal. Prosecutors have not publicly detailed what evidence they expect to rely on at a retrial.
Cruz remains in custody on a $500,000 cash bond. For Veronica, who lives near Cruz’s family, the prospect of his release is terrifying.
“I can’t live my life,” Veronica said in an interview. “Going to the grocery store. I don’t feel comfortable. It’s definitely an uncomfortable feeling.”
As the courts prepare for the next steps, Zachrey is fighting to ensure his mother is remembered for the life she lived, not the tragedy that ended it.
“I want to Google my last name and not have my mom’s face as the top story,” Zachrey said. “I don’t want our legacy to be dead mom on Highway K.""
The entire story can be read at:
https://racinecountyeye.com/2026/04/28/juanita-zdroik-homicide-cruz-vacate/
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. 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. 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.
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;
FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;