Douglas County Nebraska’s Top Crime Scene Investigator David Kofoed Convicted After Planting Bogus Evidence

PLATTSMOUTH, NE - A judge on Tuesday convicted a top crime scene investigator of evidence
tampering, after prosecutors argued that the investigator planted blood
from a slaying victim in a car linked to two innocent suspects to
bolster the case against them.

Cass County District Judge Randall Rehmeier said he didn’t believe
Douglas County CSI director David Kofoed’s excuse that the victim’s
blood ended up in the car because of a sloppy mistake. Rehmeier said
there was enough evidence to show that Kofoed intentionally planted fake
evidence.

The verdict drew gasps from those in the courtroom, mostly Kofoed’s
fellow investigators and other supporters. Kofoed left the courtroom
immediately following the announcement.

Kofoed, 53, faces up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine at his
May sentencing hearing. He remains free on bond.

While investigating the 2006 shooting deaths of Wayne and Sharmon Stock,
of Murdock, Kofoed said he found a speck of blood from one of the
victims in a car linked to their nephew Matthew Livers and his cousin,
Nicholas Sampson. That was the only physical evidence tying Sampson and
Livers to the slayings.

Livers initially confessed to the killings but quickly recanted. His
attorney has said the confession was coerced. Prosecutors said Kofoed
searched the car and reported finding a speck of Wayne Stock’s blood
after Livers took back his confession.

Kofoed did not file an official report on the blood sample until May 8,
2006. He indicated the evidence was collected that day, but has since
admitted it was done 11 days earlier. Kofoed has said distractions led
to the dating error.

Prosecutors argued at Kofoed’s trial that he intentionally planted the
blood evidence to bolster the case against Sampson and Livers, who were
jailed for several months on murder charges before they were exonerated.

Kofoed argued that accidental cross-contamination was to blame for his
finding.

Investigators linked a stolen ring found at the crime scene to Jessica
Reid and Gregory Fester, both of Horicon, Wis. They pleaded guilty to
second-degree murder and other charges in the Stocks’ deaths and are
serving life prison sentences.

In explaining his reasoning before announcing his decision, Rehmeier
said the Stock investigation had significant similarities to another
case Kofoed probed in 2003 following the disappearance and presumed
death of a Plattsmouth boy.

The body of 4-year-old Brendan Gonzalez was never found, but his father,
Ivan Henk, confessed to murdering his son and dumping his body in a
trash bin. Kofoed said he found traces of the boy’s blood in the trash
bin, corroborating Henk’s confession. Henk was convicted and is serving
life in prison.

In both cases, law enforcement had honed in on suspects, there was a
confession and pressure on investigators to corroborate it, and Kofoed
had access to DNA evidence.

After Kofoed was charged last year, Henk sought to have his conviction
thrown out on the argument that the chief investigator tampered with
evidence in his case. But a judge ruled in October that Henk wasn’t due
post-conviction relief and said Henk inaccurately described Kofoed’s DNA
finding as critical in the case. Henk’s appeal on the ruling is
pending.

Prosecutors were allowed to present evidence from the 2003 case in
Kofoed’s trial as they sought to prove his actions while investigating
the Stocks’ slayings were intentional.

Special prosecutor Clarence Mock said he doesn’t take pleasure in
Tuesday’s verdict, but he called it vindication for the overwhelming
majority of law enforcement officials who conduct their work truthfully
and with integrity.

Mock also said it serves as a lesson for law enforcement officials who
think they can cheat or manufacture evidence.

“You might be able to get away with it once or maybe twice or maybe
more, but ultimately, the truth will out, as it did in this particular
case,” he said.

Kofoed’s attorney, Steve Lefler, said he feels terrible about not opting
for a jury trial and he regrets now having Kofoed testify during the
trial. The verdict could have gone the other way, but it didn’t and now
it’s time to move forward, said Lefler who anticipates filing an appeal.

“With all due respect to a judge I greatly respect, I think he could
have gone through a very detailed list to show why he’s not guilty,”
Lefler said.

Lefler said he doesn’t fault the judge’s analysis of the case, but said
that, “If you think that he’s innocent, which you’re supposed to do, you
could have answered all those points.”

A federal jury acquitted Kofoed last year in a related case. In that, he
had been charged with falsifying records, mail fraud and depriving
Livers and Sampson of their civil rights.

Livers and Sampson have lawsuits pending alleging that Kofoed and other
investigators violated their civil rights.

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Many Criminal Cases Under Review After Dash Camera Catches Four Hollywood Florida Police Officers Staging Crime Scene After Officer Rear-Ended Woman’s Car

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA – Broward public defenders have begun reviewing some pending and past cases in the wake of a police video that shows four Hollywood police officers possibly conspiring to falsify an official report after a crash.

Three categories of cases are being reviewed by the public defenders.

For those closed within the last 30 days, and in which the officers testified, there’s still time for a defendant to withdraw a plea, officials said.

The office plans to then review cases going back further, starting with two years, to see whether any convictions could be thrown out or other motions filed in light of the officers’ diminished credibility, said Mindy Solomon, chief assistant public defender.

The public defender’s office also has at least 27 pending cases in which the officers are due to testify.

“We’ve also filed public records requests for the internal affairs files on these cops, in preparation for what we believe will be many battles,” Broward Chief Public Defender Howard Finkelstein said. “I don’t know if these officers will ever be able to remove that cloud over their heads.”

A dashboard camera installed in a Hollywood patrol car recorded the officers at the crash scene discussing ways to write their report to blame the other driver involved, though it appeared the officer may have been at fault.

Broward prosecutors on Wednesday dropped the case against Alexandra Torrensvilas, 23, a Hollywood resident who was arrested on drunken driving charges after crash about midnight Feb. 17 in the 2800 block of Sheridan Street.

Finkelstein has called on the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the FBI to investigate, sending them a copy of a letter he sent to Hollywood Police Chief Chad Wagner demanding answers.

Wagner could not be reached to comment Thursday despite attempts by phone, nor could an official with the department’s police union.

Echoing Finkelstein’s concern, the Florida Civil Rights Association, based in Orlando, on Thursday called on the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate.

Federal and state officials said it’s too soon to know whether they would get involved. Typically, they wait for a police department to complete an internal review, they said.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement, at times, steps in if an agency requests it. Hollywood police officials have not made such a request, said FDLE spokeswoman Heather Smith.

Hollywood police officials this week – after the video became public – began an internal investigation and placed Officers Joel Francisco and Dewey Pressley, Sgt. Andrew Diaz and community service Officer Karim Thomas on administrative duty.

Police officials said Thursday that they were still in the process of fulfilling several public records requests, including one from the Sun Sentinel, for copies of the officers’ personnel and disciplinary records with the department.

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Charges Dropped Against Woman Framed By Four Hollywood Florida Police After Officer Rear-Ended Her Car And Lied

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA – Public humiliation for Hollywood police continued Wednesday as state prosecutors dropped criminal charges against a driver some officers tried to blame for a rear-end crash that may have been an officer’s fault.

As the four officers talked about what to do late one night last February, a video recorder in one of their cruisers captured their words.

After reviewing the video, Broward prosecutors opted Wednesday not to charge the female motorist because the recording had thrown the police version of events into question, said State Attorney’s Office spokesman Ron Ishoy.

The 23-year-old Hollywood woman, who had been accused of drunken driving, could have gone to prison for close to three years had she been convicted as charged.

The video, seen by tens of thousands of South Floridians on the Sun Sentinel website and on news broadcasts, was the latest black eye for Hollywood police.

The episode also had justice officials and defense attorneys raising questions about the Hollywood officers’ credibility in other cases, and demanding answers from the top brass.

“If these officers were willing to lie and manipulate their story when nothing was at stake, what would they have been willing to do when there was something at stake?” said Broward Public Defender Howard Finkelstein.

If the officer who rear-ended a woman’s car on Sheridan Street had been found legally responsible, he likely would have faced only a ticket, Finkelstein said.

The public defender’s office is involved in at least 27 other criminal prosecutions in which the four officers are supposed to be material witnesses, Finkelstein said. Those cases could be affected if doubts about the officers’ credibility remain.

Finkelstein said he sent a letter demanding an explanation to Hollywood Police Chief Chad Wagner, who could not be reached to comment Wednesday.

The allegations against the officers stem from a videotaped exchange among them after Officer Joel Francisco, 36, rear-ended a car late Feb. 17.

A dashboard camera in one of the patrol cars at the scene recorded what the officers said, including this remark: “We’ll do a little Walt Disney to protect the cop because it wouldn’t have mattered because she is drunk anyway.”

Officer Dewey Pressley, 42, wrote the report detailing the midnight crash in the 2800 block of Sheridan Street. Pressley wrote “a large gray stray cat” that had been sitting on Alexandra Gabriela Torrensvilas’ lap jumped out of her car window. That caused her to veer into Francisco’s lane, where she abruptly braked, and Francisco’s car hit hers, the officer wrote in his report.

Torrensvilas subsequently was charged with four counts of drunken driving and given a citation alleging she made an improper lane change.

The case against her evaporated after the video recording and a transcript of the officers’ remarks surfaced Tuesday.

The same day, the Hollywood Police Department began an internal investigation and put Francisco, Pressley and the others involved at the Sheridan Street crash scene – Sgt. Andrew Diaz, 39, and civilian community service officer Karim Thomas – on administrative duty.

Publicity about Torrensvila’s case prompted another woman to come forward Wednesday and accuse Hollywood police of misrepresenting the facts of her case. She had been charged with leaving the scene of an accident. Pressley wrote the arrest report.

Jacelyn Glinton, through her lawyer, said she did not flee the accident scene in May.

“My client’s version of what happened is very different than what’s in the report,” said defense attorney David Williams. “The case filing attorney who investigated this matter seems to be in agreement with my client’s view, as he has chosen not to file some of the charges that were presented.”

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Dashboard Camera Catches Hollywood Florida Police Officers Lies – Woman Framed After Officer Rear-Ended Her Car

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA – After a Hollywood police officer rear-ended a car in February and then arrested the driver on drunken driving charges, he and other officers talked about doctoring the report — it said a jumpy cat created a distraction — to cover up the crash.

The exchange was recorded by a dashboard camera in one of the patrol cars. The officers apparently didn’t realize it was on.

“I don’t want to make things up ever, because it’s wrong, but if I need to bend it a little bit to protect a cop, I’m gonna,” one of the officers can be heard saying. “We’ll do a little Walt Disney to protect the cop because it wouldn’t have mattered because she is drunk anyway.”

Alexandra Gabriela Torrensvilas, 23, of Hollywood, ended up charged with four counts of drunken driving and cited for improper lane change.

On Tuesday, Hollywood police officials placed Officer Dewey Pressley, 42, Officer Joel Francisco, 36, Sgt. Andrew Diaz, 39; and civilian Community Service Officer Karim Thomas, age unavailable; on administrative duty pending an internal affairs investigation and a review by the Broward State Attorney’s Office, said spokesman Lt. Scott Pardon.

Francisco was driving the car in the crash; Pressley wrote the report and made the arrest.

Pressley’s report detailing the Feb. 17 midnight crash in the 2800 block of Sheridan Street said “a large gray stray cat” that had been sitting on Torrensvila’s lap jumped out of her car window and distracted her, causing her to veer into Francisco’s lane, where she abruptly braked, and he hit her.

“I will do the narrative for you,” one of the officers says on the tape. “I know how I am going to word this, the cat gets him off the hook.”

Torrensvilas’ attorney, Larry Meltzer, said this is a disturbing “abuse of power.”

“Actually seeing it transpire on video in front of you, it really kind of sickens you,” he said. “It’s really nauseating to sit there and watch your client’s rights go out the window.”

Torrensvilas’ four DUI charges carry a maximum penalty of nearly three years in jail, Meltzer said. He declined to say what will become of her case: “In my opinion, as of this time, it’s being handled appropriately.”

A spokesman for the Broward State Attorney’s Office declined to comment .

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Two Fired Veteran Hollywood Florida Police Officers Finally Charged And Arrested After Faking Crime Scene Following Accident In Which Officer Rear-Ended Woman’s Car

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA – Two longtime Hollywood police officers fired earlier this year after allegations they falsified records in a police-involved crash were arrested Wednesday on criminal charges in that case.

Joel Francisco, 37, and Dewey Pressley, 43, turned themselves in at the Broward County Main Jail in downtown Fort Lauderdale, according to the Broward State Attorney’s Office.

Both men were charged with four counts of official misconduct, four counts of falsifying records, one count of conspiracy to commit official misconduct and one count of conspiracy to falsify records.

Francisco and Pressley were in jail Wednesday night, with bail set at $100,000.

The charges stem from a February 2009 crash in which Francisco, while on duty and driving a patrol vehicle, rear-ended a Hollywood woman’s car. Francisco’s personnel file listed eight other crashes in his 12 years with the Hollywood Police Department.

Other officers, a crime scene technician and a community service aide were at the crash scene. Some of them were recorded by a police car dashboard camera discussing how they would doctor the crash report to absolve Francisco in the collision, authorities said.

Alexandra Torrens-Vilas, whose car Francisco rear-ended, was arrested on DUI charges in the Feb. 16, 2009, crash.

Five months later, the dashboard video became public, and Hollywood police officials began an internal investigation into what happened at the crash scene.

Prosecutors later dropped the DUI charges against Torrens-Vilas, saying the video from the dashboard camera cast doubt on what police officers initially said happened.

Pressley had written in a police report that a gray cat jumped from Torrens-Vilas’ lap out of her car window and distracted her, causing her to veer into Francisco’s lane. There, she abruptly hit the brakes and Francisco struck her car, the report stated.

A camera on Pressley’s patrol car recorded one of the investigators saying: “We’ll do a little Walt Disney to protect the cop because it wouldn’t have mattered because she [Torrens-Vilas] is drunk anyway.”

Prosecutors said they were still working Wednesday with Hollywood police in investigating the matter.

Pressley, a Hollywood police officer for 22 years, and Francisco were fired in January. So were three other Police Department employees who were at the crash scene: Sgt. Andrew Diaz, Community Service Officer Karim Thomas and crime scene technician Andrea Tomassi, none of whom have been charged in the case.

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