This month, Brendan Dassey came in the news again when Steven Avery’s ex-attorney asked for clemency. Brendan Dassey has been convicted for the death of Teresa Halbach.
Brendan Dassey’s Murder Case
Brendan Dassey has been serving and has served more than half of his life in prison. His conviction was for the death of Teresa Halbach, a freelance photographer. Along with him, Brendan Dassey’s uncle Steven Avery was also charged and convicted.
The year was 2005 at the time and Brendan Dassey was 16 years old at the time when he was arrested. This true crime has also made its way on TV screens as the Netflix series examines the events surrounding the trial. The show is titled Making a Murderer.
Although true crime fans have followed the series to its acclaim, the crime itself received coverage globally as well. Recently, Steven Avery’s ex-attorney asked for clemency for Brendan Dassey in a letter. The letter was sent to Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers.
This comes after many are requesting the same, such as the reality TV star, Kim Kardashian. She has tweeted Wisconsin Governor to grant pardon to Brendan Dassey and has urged him to read his letter. She has publicly expressed support for Brendan Dassey.
Brendan Dassey – The Convicted Felon
Born on 19th October 1989, Brendan Ray Dassey was born in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, America. He gained notoriety when he turned 16 and confessed to the murder, mutilation of a corpse, and second-degree sexual assault of freelance photographer, Teresa Halbach.
The crime was carried out on 31st October 2005.
Brendan’s Early Life
Brendan Dassey was born to parents Peter Dassey and Barbara Dassey. His parents belonged to Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, where Brendan was born along with his three brothers and one half-brother.
His brothers are named Bryan, Bobby, and Blaine, and his half-brother, Brad. Enrolled at Mishicot High School, Brendan Dassey was a sophomore who was in his mid-teens.
His IQ had been reportedly in borderline deficiency due to which his admission at Mishicot High School was in special education classes.
Brendan has also been described as an introvert. He was a quiet, young man who was probably like any other kid in his state. He liked wrestling and was a follower of WWE to an extent that he used to be upset if he missed its live events.
His likes also include video games and animals. He had no criminal history and was in no way linked to the criminal justice system before his conviction in 2005.
Relation to Steven Avery
Barbara Tadych or Barbara Dassey was Steven Avery’s sister. That made Brendan Dassey his nephew. Steven Avery was also convicted alongside his nephew in the murder case of the freelance photographer.
It should be noted that Steven Avery has been termed innocent by Brendan Dassey’s half-brother, Brad Dassey. He accuses Barbara Dassey of tampering with evidence and insists that his uncle has not committed the crime.
Brendan Dassey Now
Brendan Dassey was 16 when he was convicted in 2005, which makes him in his early thirties now. He left high school in his final year and wasn’t able to complete his education.
He wrote a letter in 2019 to Governor Wisconsin in which he stated he would like to work in the video game industry if ever given the chance.
Seeking to achieve pardon, he has been continuously rejected. He has a tremendous following who are demanding that he be released, but to no avail to date.
The Murder of Freelance Photographer, Teresa Halbach
Teresa Halbach was 25 years old when she disappeared and was reported as missing by her parents. Born on 22nd March 1980, in Kaukauna, Wisconsin, she resided in close proximity to her parents in Calumet County.
Her last location was known as her visiting the Avery Salvage Yard on 31st October 2005.
Her vehicle was discovered partially concealed on the Avery property. After a thorough search of the Avery property, County Sheriff found remains of Teresa Halbach, which were chafed.
Along with her remains, other belongings such as her cell phone, car keys, license plates were also found along with blood matches in Steven Avery’s car. With these findings, Steven Avery was charged with the kidnapping, mutilation of a corpse, illegal possession of a firearm, and murder of Teresa Halbach.
Brendan Dassey’s Role
Brendan Dassey was Avery’s alibi during the whole ordeal at first. He was subjected to many interrogations, which were later revealed to be without any counsel present or a parent. His mother agreed to such interrogations where there were promises made to Dassey, which later turned out to be false.
Brendan Dassey confessed to the murder, rape, and mutilation of the photographer’s corpse. Under the guise of ‘approved interrogation techniques’, Brendan accepted he was a co-conspirator.
There was backlash on obtaining a confession from Brendan unsupervised at his age. Although the techniques employed were approved, a minor without the presence of a guardian or parent can be intimidated.
In his confession, Brendan Dassey was explicit in his details regarding his role of being a co-conspirator in the whole ordeal. A United States magistrate judge later termed the confession as “clearly involuntary in a constitutional sense”.
This decision was overturned by an appellate court. Due to it already being overturned, the United States Supreme court, which refused to hear the case by itself, also kept the decision of the appellate court, upheld.
The Arrest of Brendan Dassey
Brendan Dassey was charged and arrested on 1st March 2006. Charges were of being party to sexual assault, first-degree murder and mutilation of a corpse. The prosecution was led by Ken Kratz, who held a huge press conference to announce the details and charges.
The ordeal was widely covered by newspapers and television throughout the country.
Recantation of His Confession And Present
Brendan Dassey recanted his confession later when he addressed the trial judge in a letter. For backing up, he said he got ideas from a book. He also wrote letters to Governor Wisconsin but was constantly refused.
As of today, Brendan Dassey is still in jail.
His legal team is backed by many influential people such as the former US Solicitor General Mr. Seth Waxman and his team. The review was filed in the Supreme Court on 20th February 2018.
Inspired by the events and results, Illinois became the first state to pass a law, which prevents police from lying to children during questioning to evoke confessions.
