Making A Murderer: 10 Episodes, My 2 Cents

I'm not the first, and I won't be the last person to weigh in on Netflix's documentary series, Making A Murderer. To say the 10 episodes riveted me is an understatement. My wife and I devoured each installment with plenty of pauses throughout to discuss, debate and vent. It's a testimony to the series' creators, Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos, that one cannot reach the narrative's conclusion without the heartfelt conviction that Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey were framed and railroaded by the Mantiwoc County Sheriff's Department for the murder of Teresa Halbach.

Throughout the unfolding tragedy of Making A Murderer, the various local prosecutors and cops, as well as a public defender and his investigator are skillfully fleshed out to represent the worst that our justice and legal system have to offer. Similar to the Paradise Lost documentary series surrounding the West Memphis Three case, alternate suspects and theories are offered while heroes and villains are clearly defined. Honestly, I challenge even the most pro-cop viewer to continue standing behind the likes Lenk, Colborn and Wiegert once the dust finally settles. Likewise, even the most conservative viewers must acknowledge at least some grudging admiration for the efforts of defense attorneys Dean Strang, Jerry Buting and the heavy hitters from the Innocence Project.

Needless to say, I displayed herculean will power for three days, resisting the urge to research the hell out of Steven Avery's case online before concluding the series. As soon as we finished the final episode last night, however, I was online doing a virtual paper chase until the wee hours of the morning. I'm a savvy enough student of film to know that all filmmakers have a story to tell and a vision to impart, even those making real-life documentaries. I presumed details contrary to Avery's innocence lurked somewhere on the cutting-room floor. It only took me three minutes to find the four most damning unaddressed evidentiary claims that never made their way into Riccairdi and Demos' story:

1)  In the months leading up to Halbach’s disappearance, Avery called Auto Trader several times and always specifically requested Halbach to come out and take photos of his cars. Halbach complained to her boss that she didn’t want to go out to Avery’s trailer anymore. Halbach told her boss, coworkers, friends and family that Avery once met her on one of her visit wearing only a towel.

Question: If true, how the hell was this left out of the trial footage and the documentary? Was this ever even addressed in the trial? I'd love to see the transcript of any statement or affidavit attesting to this claim.

2)  On the day that Halbach went missing, Avery called her cell phone three times. On the two calls placed prior to Halbach's arrival on his property, Avery blocked his phone number using the *67 feature to hide his identity. On his third and final call, placed after Avery claims she left his property, Avery did not use the *67 feature.

Question:  If true, the first two calls are indicative of suspicious and or stalking behavior. The last "unblocked" call can then be viewed as an alibi call to cover Avery's tracks. Once again, I must ask - was this ever addressed in the trial? I'd love to see the transcript and the incoming call log from Halbach's cell phone.

3)  Avery purchased handcuffs and leg irons only three weeks prior to Halbach's disappearance.

Question: Once again, if true, how the hell was this left out of the trial footage and the documentary, especially in light of Brendan Dassey's seemingly fantastical "confession involving a bondage/torture killing.

4)  Avery's DNA - but not blood - was found on the hood latch to Halbach's RAV4. Even if you believe some of Avery's blood sample from his previous conviction was planted inside Halbach's vehicle, there really is no way non-blood DNA (skin cells or bodily fluid ) can be reliably preserved for transfer like blood.

Question:  If this claim is true and part of the trial transcript, then why was it not presented in the documentary along with the State's blood evidence? Avery's DNA on the hood latch also supports a statement in Brendan Dassey's account where he speaks about moving Halbach's vehicle to the back of the Avery property and removing the SUV's battery.

Considering the inculpatory nature of the above four points, I find myself even more uncertain of Avery's guilt or innocence if these details end up proving true. (NOTE - I'm currently chasing down transcripts and primary sources regarding these claims.) Of course, everyone who watches Making A Murderer has a gut theory regarding what really happened. So here's mine:

1)  Avery killed Halbach alone. His nephew, Brendan Dassey, was not present for the killing. The killing was not conducted in any way similar to the prosecution's sex torture scenario. Avery had an obsession with Halbach. He lured her to his property, and then made a move on her inside or directly outside his trailer. Halbach got free of Avery and attempted to flee to her RAV4 and escape. Avery followed her to the vehicle brandishing his gun in an effort to frighten her into compliance. Under threat from the gun, she moved into the rear compartment where Avery tried to rape her. She struggled, and he eventually killed her in the vehicle's rear compartment using his hands and the gun. This explains her blood in the vehicle's rear. Her resistance yielded the cut on his hand, which explains his blood by the RAV4's  ignition and steering wheel when he moved the vehicle into the garage or some other place out of view from the road.

2)  Avery removed Halbach's body from the back of the RAV4 and put it inside the burn barrel. Once inside the barrel, he partially dismembered the body, which explains the lack of blood on the garage floor. Avery then called over his nephew, Brendan Dassey, to help him clean up the crime scene, dispose of Halbach's corpse in the fire pit and move the RAV4 to the back of the property. Brendan was with Avery when he burned the body. Most of the body burned in the fire, but parts were left behind inside the barrel. Any remains at the the third site on the Avery property were probably taken from the fire pit or the barrel by animals.

3)  After Officer Colborn went to the Avery property to question Steven regarding Halbach's disappearance, he conducted an illegal search of the property and found the RAV4 in the back part of the lot. He called it in and got the positive ID. Knowing that he'd found the vehicle illegally without a warrant, he contacted his superiors, most probably Detective Lenk. Lenk told Colborn to tell no one, and then the Mantiwoc police colluded with the volunteer searchers and arranged to have the van "discovered" by the volunteer searchers. When blood evidence, etc. proved underwhelming inside the vehicle, Lenk and Coloborn went back to Halbach's family, secured the RAV4's spare key. This is when Lenk or another Mantiwoc cop went to Avery's previous DNA evidence, stole the blood and then transferred Avery's DNA to the RAV4's spare key. The key was then planted to bolster the case.

4)  Brendan Dassey cooperated with Avery in disposing the body, but that's it. Everything else in his confession is simply confabulation prompted by the detectives interrogating him.

5)  The deleted voicemail is an angry message left by her ex-boyfriend that was deleted by the family after they were told by the Mantiwoc cops that anything not implicating Avery might be used to establish reasonable doubt.

6)  Dean Strang, Avery's attorney, believes Avery is guilty, and Brendan Dassey is innocent of everything but his participation in disposing the body.  However, Strang also knows that the conviction is grossly unjust because of police misconduct and planted evidence.

Ultimately, I believe Avery killed Halbach. However, given the police misconduct, the jury should have acquitted him due to obvious reasonable doubt presented at trial. In truth, the best resolution would be for an appeals court to award Avery a new trial where all the untainted evidence can be presented by an investigation and prosecution team wholly unconnected to any of the local departments involved.

I'd love for anyone to tell me their thoughts and where my reasoning may have gone wrong. I'm certainly not 100% certain of my theory, and I'd welcome some fresh perspectives.