IT HAS BEEN 1 YEARS SINCE THE MURDER OF TWELVE-YEAR-OLD STEPHANIE CROW, BUT THE CROW FAMILY'S CIVIL
LAWSUIT AGAINST THE OCEAN SIDE POLICE DETECTIVES COULD FINALLY BE MOVING FORWARD IN FEDERAL
COURT. JOINING US TO EXPLAIN THE LATEST LEGAL RULING IS KPBS SENIOR NEWS EDITOR MARK SAUER
WHO COVERED THE CASE SINCE THE GIRL'S SLAYING IN 1998. THANKS, MARK, FOR COMING. WHAT IS
IT THAT MAKES THE CASE OF STEPHANIE CROW DISTINCTIVE? IT IS A MURDER CASE, BUT WHY IS IT DIFFERENT?
IT WAS A SHOCKING CASE TO BEGIN WITH. THIS GIRL WAS FOUND SLAIN ON HER BEDROOM FLOOR.
HER FAMILY DISCOVERS THAT, AND THEY CALL 911. THE POLICE SHOW UP AND INSTEAD OF LOOKING
AT A FAR MORE LOGICAL SUSPECT, A PROW LEER WHO THEY HAD TWO 911 CALLS ABOUT THAT EVENING,
THE EVENING OF THE MURDER, THEY FOCUSED ON HER BROTHER. THEY THOUGHT IT WAS AN INSIDE
JOB. THEY SAID WE'RE GOING TO SEE WHO IN THIS HOUSE KILLED THIS GIRL AND THEY FOCUSED ON
MICHAEL CROW.
A KID, HE WAS A KID.
HE WAS 14 YEARS OLD. THEY WERE COMPLETELY WRONG. THEY BROUGHT HIM IN, IN, INTRERGTED
HIM FOR MANY YEARS WITHOUT AN ATTORNEY, WITHOUT HIS PARENT'S KNOWLEDGE AND THEY BOTCHED THE
INVESTIGATION FROM START TO FINISH. THEY BROUGHT IN TWO OF HIS CLOSE FRIENDS, JOSH TREEDWAY
AND AARON HOW'SER AND INTERROGATED THEM FOR MANY HOURS, CAME UP WITH TWO CONFESSIONS IN
THIS CASE, ONE FROM MIKEEL AND ONE FROM JOSH TREEDWAY, AND FORTUNATELY THEY WERE VIDEOTAPED
AND YOU CAN SEE AND THE JURIES EVENTUALLY COULD AND JUDGES TAKE APART WHAT HAPPENED
IN THAT INTERROGATION ROOM AND WHY THEY DIDN'T HOLD UP AND EVENTUALLY THROUGH THE GOOD WORK
OF A DEFENSE ATTORNEY MARY ELLE LEN ATRIDGE STEPHANIE'S BLOOD WAS FOUND ON THE RED SWEATSHIRT
WORN BY RICHARD TO AT THE NIGHT OF THE HEARD.
AND HE WAS A VAG RANT BASICALLY WASN'T HE?
HE WAS WELL KNOWN TO POLICE, WELL KNOWN TO POLICE THROUGHOUT THE NORTH COUNTY, BEEN A
PROW LEER, SNEAKED INTO HOMES MANY, MANY TIMES, HE HAS LONG HISTORY OF MENTAL ILLNESS AND
DRUG ABUSE, AND WAS A FAR MORE LIKELY SUSPECT, BUT THEY DISMISSED HIM. THEY DIDN'T THINK
THAT HE COULD POSSIBLY HAVE COMMITTED THIS CRIME, AND THE CROW'S ATTORNEY WILL ARGUE
IF THIS CASE GETS INTO FEDERAL COURT IF THE WAY HAS BEEN CLEARED THAT THEY HAD EVERY MOTIVE
NOT TO WANT TO BE THE KILLER BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T CATCH HIM THE NIGHT BEFORE, AND PLEASE
LET IT BE SOMEBODY IN THAT HOUSE AND NOT THE GUY WE DIDN'T CATCH.
OKAY. SO THAT IS WHAT HAPPENED THEN. THIS WEEK WHAT IS IT THAT IS PUSHING THIS CASE
AHEAD NOW?
THIS CASE HAS GONE ON FOR 13 YEARS IN FEDERAL COURT. THE CROW FAMILY, ALL THREE FAMILIES
ACTUALLY HAD SUED, SAYING THAT THEIR SONS RIGHTS, CIVIL RIGHTS WERE VIOLATED AGAINST
SELF INCRIMINATION, AND UNDER THE FIFTH AND 14th AMENDMENTS, AND THAT LAWSUIT WAS BASICALLY
GUTTED SEVERAL YEARS AGO BY A FEDERAL COURT JUDGE HERE. THE CROWS APPEALED, AND THE HAUSERS
APPEALED, AND THE NINTH CIRCUIT COURT A YEAR AGO SAID THAT THAT CASE CAN GO FORWARD. RICHARD
TUIT WAS THE KILLER, THESE BOYST SHOCKED THE CONSCIENCE WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM IN THE INTERROGATION
ROOM AND THEY ARE ALLOWED TO SUED. ESCANDIDO AND OCEAN SIDE DECIDED TO APPEAL AND THE SUPREME
COURT SAID WE'RE NOT GOING TO HEAR THE APPEAL AND THE NINTH CIRCUIT RULING IS THE LAW OF
THE LAND AND IT MAY TAB TOWARD.
THE KEY TO THIS ARE THE COERCED CONFESSIONS. HOW COMMON ARE COERCED CONFESSIONS?
THEY ARE UNFORTUNATELY RARE OTHERWISE IT WOULD BE CHAOS IN OUR JUDICIAL SYSTEM, BUT THEY
DO OCCUR. WE HAVE HAD MORE THAN 200 MEN RELEASED FROM DEATH ROW ALMOST ALL EXONERATED BY DNA
EVIDENCE IN RECENT YEARS. FULLY ONE QUARTER OF THOSE CASES INVOLVE CONFESSIONS BY DEFINITION,
COERCED AND FALSE CONFESSIONS, AND IN FACT THE CROW CASE WE HAVE A CHAPTER, MY COLLEAGUE
AT THE UNION TRIBUNE JOHN WILKINS AND I WROTE A CHAPTER ON THE CROW I SAY CAY, PART OF 20
CHAPTERS IN THE BOOK, TRUE STORIES OF FALSE CONFESSIONS PUBLISHED BY THE NORTHWESTERN
UNIVERSITY PRESS LAST YEAR. JOHN GRISHAM HAS A CHAPTER IN THERE. THEY'RE ALL TRUE CASES
OF PEOPLE WHO CONFESSED TO MURDERS THEY DIDN'T COMMIT.
THIS WILL GO TO TRIAL OR WHAT?
IT WILL GO TO TRIAL OR SETTLE. IT COULD BE WORTH MILLIONS, THIS CASE, BUT I DON'T THINK
IT WILL AFFECT THE BUDGETS OF OCEAN SIDE OR ESCANDIDO BECAUSE INSURANCE WILL COVER IT.
THANK YOU, MARK.