The series followed the case of Steven Avery, who was found guilty of murdering Theresa Halbach in questionable circumstances, and his nephew Brendan Dassey, who was convicted of helping him in the alleged crime. He’ll be freed in 90 days, unless the case’s prosecutors decide to retry him.
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Dassey’s story gained global attention in December 2015 when he was the subject of Netflix documentary Making a Murderer.
And while many people are heralding the 91-page ruling of US Magistrate Judge William Duffin (which you can read in full here) as justice for the now 26-year-old Dassey, there are others who wonder why it took so long.
The focus of the judge’s decision was on the interrogation when Dassey confessed. Halbach’s charred remains were found in an incineration barrel and a burn pit on Avery’s property, about 80 miles (130 km) north of Milwaukee.
Halbach, who had not been seen since October 31, resided next door to her parents in Calumet County.[13] Halbach visited the Avery Salvage Yard in Manitowoc County on October 31, 2005.
Duffin also criticized Dassey’s first attorney, Leonard Kachinsky, who the judge wrote, was excited to be on the case because of all the media attention.
The judge said he didn’t believe investigators tried to trick Dassey into confessing but instead misunderstood the constitutional ramifications of telling him that they already knew everything that happened and he would be OK if he told the truth. Court papers describe Dassey as a slow learner with poor grades, with difficulty understanding some aspects of language and expressing himself verbally.
One telling moment came in March 2006, when 16-year-old Dassey was arrested for homicide … and became upset that he might miss WrestleMania. Zellner said in a statement that she’s confident that Avery’s conviction will eventually be overturned “when an unbiased court” reviews new evidence. Ricciardi and Demos went on talk shows, spoke on news programs, conducted interviews, and seminars, but as their acclaim grew for the groundbreaking series, its subjects-Dassey and Avery-still sat in prison with lifetime sentences.
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“The kid’s confession was not entered into evidence against Avery, and I don’t think it impacted Avery’s trial at all”, Friedberg said.
