He needed an income; the Multnomah County district attorneys office was offering a $13,000-a-year internship. . For the good part of a month, prosecutors and defense attorneys, scrambling to find a solution, wandered through a legal Twilight Zone. After Keith Jesperson on Nov. 2 pleaded no contest to the murder of Taunja Bennett, drawing a life sentence, Oregon officially had two separate parties in jail for the same homicide--put there under two entirely different theories about the crime. . How we can build a clean and renewable future. John Sosnovske was 39 years of age and was described as an alcoholic with violent tendencies. . She told investigators she drove them to a scenic overlook at the Columbia Gorge, where Sosnovske told her to pull over. It had amounted to nothing, though. It wasnt Multnomah Countys case. You cant be a prosecutor if you shrink from making the calls. For days on end in May 1994, Corson and Ingram scrambled across eastern Oregon, tracking the Bend man whose wife thought he might be the Happy Face Killer. Clear your docket, Schrunk told McIntyre. This has been an awful three months, McIntyre allowed; just ask his family and colleagues. As they drove, Pavlinac described Tanyas appearance precisely, getting every detail right. . Her daughters are still trying to understand why their mother did what she did, and why she didn't see another way to end the relationship. McIntyre could not. She told investigators she had gone to the bar to meet Sosnovke, but Bennett was alive when she picked them up and both got in the car with her. Why is Frank McCourt really pushing it? Why Did Laverne Pavlinac Come Forward? He was late, he was busy. They couldnt blow this off. In November 1995, a judge released Pavlinac and Sosnovske from prison. She tells this to her own daughter.. Why was he screwing up their case? A relative, or a friend of a friend. How did the GameStop stock spike on Wall Street happen? Things like Internet chat rooms were off-limits to his kids; hed rather keep the password to himself, hed rather drive home at midday to log them on when they needed to download something for school. Pavlinac was credible, McIntyre decided. But in the process, she also falsely implicated herself. Everyone drove back to Portland. Pavlinac had been with Sosnovske, a farmhand 18 years her junior, for a decade when the Bennett case caught her attention in 1990. What was going on here? Woman Falsely Confesses to Murder to Escape Abusive Boyfriend In mid-February, the cases two lead investigators, Al Corson and John Ingram, came to brief them. Laverne even took the police to the exact spot where Taunja was found. The Registry also maintains a more limited database of known exonerations prior to 1989. You could tell where people had been in and out, the vehicles and everything else, limbs broke. None of it could be corroborated. Both were convicted of the crime but were released five . Punched her, slapped her. McIntyre waited for the pen to come out, waited for the release order to be signed. They were forcing him to relinquish his sense of certainty. Have a nice day from Happy Face.. Laverne Pavlinac, 57, read about the murder in depth and decided Bennetts case could be used to end her 10-year abusive relationship with her 39-year-old boyfriend. It was, to him, familiar territory: You take a stand, or else you never get anything done. Sosnovske was brought in for questioning and denied any involvement. He liked to think he moved cautiously while deciding what to believe. She knew because shed helped him dispose of the body. Hed spoken that day with certitude. Ingram and Corson needed to meet with him, as soon as possible. So thats where they formally arraigned Sosnovske that evening. They were a study in contrasts. By 5 p.m., he was under arrest for the murder of Taunja Bennett. John Ingram shook his head in regret and puzzlement. They took her to the Columbia River Gorge to see if she could point out locations only the police and killer would know. As she drove, she heard him cutting Taunjas jeans. McIntyre seethed and paced about. . At the booking counter, before being led away, Pavlinac turned and gave both detectives big hugs. Could she really see the patrol cars odometer from the back seat? I have been taking it out on different people . He had a flat affect and a cons institutional politeness--yes sir, no sir--although he hadnt spent much time behind bars. Only occasionally does someone ask how often other such mistakes go undetected. . McIntyre frowned, clenched his glass, nursed his drink. When he finished, Pavlinac realized Bennett had stopped breathing. Not a great deal is known about Bennett's background, but the 23-year-old was first reported missing on 21st January 1990. Whoever wrote them says he killed Taunja Bennett. "Her persistence in this manipulation resulted in her own conviction.". It can distract law enforcement from preventing more deaths by looking for the real killer, and that's exactly what happened when Laverne and her boyfriend John Sosnovski received life sentences for . "John That's the worst thing you've ever gotten yourself into," she told him. Ingram was right, Pavlinacs story did still fit the facts. On those occasions, Jim McIntyre more often than not bristles. Shes not in custody. During the trial, she recanted her confession, claiming that she had lied to police in an attempt to escape her relationship with Sosnovske, whom she said . Eventually, the case was turned over to prosecutors and Pavlinac and Sosnovske were arrested in February, 1990. When he did, he confessed to Bennett's murder. He described Bennetts underwear and shirt incorrectly. Laverne claimed that she had overheard her then-partner brag about killing Taunja and even went so far as to confess to helping him dump the body. Right or wrong, the district attorney was saying, this is a problem. Glenn Youngkin rules out presidential campaign while in California, 7 bodies found during search for missing Oklahoma teens, US to lift most federal COVID-19 vaccine mandates next week, Multiple fatalities on Illinois highway during a blinding windstorm. Friends and family had previously described her as a 'cheerful and lovely person' with a flare for striking up conversations with strangers. When she recanted, Pavlinac said she falsely confessed because she was stuck in a volatile relationship with Sosnovske, desperately seeking a way out and wanting him in prison. On January 21, 1990 the body of 23-year-old Taunja Bennett was found in a remote area of the Columbia Gorge, just outside Portland, Oregon. More than noises, really. The Craziest False Confessions In History - Grunge She was frightened, she wanted to make sure they took Sosnovske away. He also sketched a smiling face atop his first page. Just as well, he reasoned. ., When the tape ended, McIntyre rose and pointed at Pavlinac. These people came in believing one thing, did a complete 180, and werent afraid to say so. Sosnovske really did kill that girl. They were convicted and sentenced to prison. He was divorced, with two children. Jesperson addressed Pavlinac and Sosnovske directly in his letter. 10 Bizarre False Confessions To Horrible Murders - Listverse Her own daughter. As McIntyre knew, Schrunks aversion to overreaching prosecutors derived from firsthand experience. If Jesperson threw anything, it should still be here. Whered you put her?, The detectives shifted in discomfort. The first time she publicly said her real age, Cox revealed, was at a speaking engagement in January of 2019. Although the judge vacated Johns sentence, the show mentions that he refused to overturn Lavernes conviction claiming that she had abused the system and obstructed justice which allowed the real killer to roam free. JUSTICE STORY: Sick smiley face sealed killer's fate Though she was legally guilty, though her conviction would stand, Pavlinac could walk free. Pavlinac answered through sobs. It was true, Pavlinac said, that Sosnovske called her from JBs that night. When Jesperson began talking, McIntyre thought he sounded ill-educated, but not stupid or delusional. When he drew a life sentence, with a 15-year minimum term, that appeared to be the end of the Taunja Bennett murder case. Ive been through cases where cops make mistakes. But the judge did not overturn Pavlinac's conviction, writing he did not find a constitutional defect with her trial since she had been convicted by a jury of her peers. Jesperson : FalseConfessions - Reddit No, no, Sosnovske cried. And that's how I remember her," said Melissa Gavin, her longtime friend. She was going to send John Sosnovske to jail - by any means necessary. I used a 1/2 inch soft nylon rope, burnt on one end, fraid cut on the other and tied it around her neck . In February 1987 shed called county probation to report he was drinking. Who was this guy Jesperson? The judge insisted, "Pavlinac has selfishly engaged in an obsessive and persistent obstruction of justice which deflected the investigation at an early stage, causing it to focus on her boyfriend, Sosnovske, while the real killer remained free to kill and kill again". The experience shaped him. Good Piece printed in pencil. Pavlinacs eyewitness account, Sosnovskes polygraphs, Sosnovskes handwritten statement. If you need help or need help supporting someone else, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. McIntyre listened as that tape now unwound in an Oregon State Police conference room. Once on trial in 1991, Laverne Pavlinac pleaded not guilty to the charges and claimed that her whole story was false as she was trying to escape her relationship. As reported by the New York Daily News, Laverne Pavlinac confessed to the murder of Taunja Bennett in January 1990. Yes, he acknowledged. Not in the least. That made it their case again. She was very co-operative with the police. The website is updated daily, frequently with exonerations that occurred in the past. Her conduct has been an affront to our entire criminal justice system. The cost to taxpayers has been enormous, the cost to Sosnovske incalculable. Yet to continue to imprison a factually innocent person would violate Oregons constitutional guarantee against cruel and unusual punishment. Well, Ingram said. Others involved practical limitations--it was hard to imagine Sosnovske, a frail drunk with bad knees, carrying a dead body down a steep embankment. The Bennett case was one of five murder prosecutions he handled in 1991. At first, she denied everything. She found him standing outside JBs, in an adjacent truckstop parking lot, Taunja Bennetts body on the ground beside him. Surely she was telling the truth. He started out thinking hed be a cop. When they took his handcuffs off, Jesperson reached out to shake the prosecutors hand. I think youve got the wrong people.. Laverne Cox Reveals She's Not Lying About Her Age Anymore What's next for abortion rights in America? Evidence Clears Two. The Law Doesn't. - The New York Times Ms. Pavlinac recanted after being handed a 10-year sentence, and both she and Mr. Sosnovske served four years in prison before the real killer confessed to the deed. Saying he took this girl into the gorge and strangled her. Pavlinac's conviction remained, although she was also released. Shed later recanted, as they often do, but that hadnt stopped McIntyre from using her tearful admission. To no avail--he coughed and moved so much, they had to stop midway through the test. At Schrunks side, agreeing, stood two assistant state attorneys general and Pavlinacs defense lawyer. Laverne Pavlinac - Wikipedia Now, she said, she's "proudly 49, about . The judge refused to vacate Pavlinacs conviction, chastising her for abusing the judicial system. But when investigators were unable to match the purse and denim piece to Bennett, they confronted Pavlinac about fabricating evidence. Mike Schrunk told reporters his office was reviewing recent evidence. Yes, Im sick, but I enjoy myself too. He talked of unbuttoning Bennetts shirt, yet shed been wearing a sweater. Then they all rolled to the Salem courthouse. Ingram, whose expression suggested a kindly uncle more than a homicide dick, made it clear to McIntyre: He thought Pavlinac believable. He ordered McIntyre to give him daily briefings; he appealed for results; he told reporters, I dont want our office to do wrong. It started in late January 1990 with the body of an unidentified female, found strangled in the brush off an isolated road in the Columbia Gorge. No one really paid attention to this, even though he'd signed the confession with a hand-drawn happy face. I think that she was at a bad place in her life," said her daughter Darlene Carpenter. The detectives looked at each other, then turned on their tape recorder. These people did the right thing., Only occasionally does someone point out that but for a serial killers bizarre scribblings, there never would have been recognition of this whopping mistake. But a few days later, they got another call from Pavlinac. We need to report this, John.' He preferred to savor triumphs, not second-guess them. Its terrible to live your life in jeopardy, Pavlinac explained. According to Pavlinacs account, the murder happened at the Burns Brother Truckstop, which is in Washington County, not Multnomah. She was wrongly convicted after falsely confessing that she and her then boyfriend Sosnovske strangled and disposed of the body of Taunja Bennett. . After contacting police, Ms. Pavlinac and Mr. Sosnovske were charged with the murder, the latter eventually pleading guilty to avoid the death penalty. Pavlinac, who was then 57, told police she had helped her partner John Sosnovske rape and kill the young woman. Go arrest her, McIntyre said. Jim McIntyre winced, for hed heard this song before. Each theory had its supporters. She inferred certain information from the questions the detectives asked her. Only occasionally does someone--as Wendell Birkland did recently--suggest that this isnt an isolated case, Laverne is not the only innocent person convicted by people of goodwill.. After John Sosnovskes arraignment in Washington County on Feb. 22, 1990, McIntyre had managed to stay free of the Bennett murder case for only four days. That night, he scrawled, he saw Taunja Bennett at JBs. He recalled each of them; all presented certain challenges. He was not skeptical about the Bennett murder case, though. Shes tormented by guilt, thats why she confessed. She also said she was able to point to the location of Bennett's body based on where the brush had been cleared away. Bennett's body was found dumped near a local highway after the young woman had been seen out at the local bars the night before. Were going after a serial killer. She also seen tire tracks and broken branches. In late 1990, Birkland started negotiating the precise terms of a plea bargain. Sometimes you end up on the wrong side., Barry Siegel is a Times national correspondent. Case tapes reveal woman's incriminating confession to involvement in 1990 murder case Laverne Pavlinac claimed she was involved in Taunja Bennett's death. This is too weird, he said. Or 'I will cause trouble for your family. Judge Paul Lipscomb of the Circuit Court of Oregon agreed to vacate Sosnovske's sentence after ruling his no-contest plea violated his constitutional rights because it had not been voluntary since he was facing the death penalty. On the other hand, John wanted to escape the death penalty and hence pleaded no contest to the charges, which saw him also being sentenced to life in prison. It is difficult to turn yourself in for murder, Jesperson told him. If nine jurors were inclined to put a grandmother on death row, what would they do with an abusive drunk? But at her trial, Pavlinac recanted, saying that she had lied in an attempt to escape her abusive. If we knew then what we know now, we would never have prosecuted these people. Remembering George Floyd: A year of protest. Tell me Mac, Schrunks voice was asking. In mid-March, theyd found the nude body of Julie Ann Winningham, dumped down a scenic bank off a Columbia Gorge highway. Some were even accurate. He was still willing to rise, point to a defendant, and declare this--this--to be the face of a murderer. If I killed her, I didnt mean to . A jury had convicted a Portland woman named Laverne Pavlinac based on her detailed confession to police that she helped her boyfriend John Sosnovske rape and kill the 23-year-old. No way, McIntyre thought. Then his pager flashed and beeped. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. You fix on your theory, you argue your vision, the jury decides whats true. She claimed to be scared of her boyfriend. . He wrote checks to orthodontists, rather than fix his busted fishing boat motor. First, just before it began in late January, Pavlinac officially recanted her confession. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? Dad always has worried about me because of what I have gone through in the divorce finances etc, hed written in various letters. Why dont the Electoral College and popular vote always match up? All NRE reports represent a moment in time. . Hes a news hound; he loves the attention. Chris Peterson visited her at the Oregon Womens Correctional Institute in Salem. After years of alleged abuse at the hands of her boyfriend, 58-year-old grandma Laverne Pavlinac had decided enough was enough. "He went off into the woods with her," Pavlinac told investigators. But I was wrong . I am a good person at times? he wrote. Pavlinac was tried first. A team of Explorer Scouts, supervised by sheriffs deputies, fighting through the dense foliage, found nothing. "I don't think she was in love with him. In January 1991, a jury had convicted Laverne Pavlinac of felony homicide; two months later, her boyfriend, John Sosnovske, had pleaded no contest to the same charge. He hadnt even decided Jesperson was for real. They had no physical evidence, no fingerprints, DNA or blood. . Id give them accolades. Sosnovske, fearing the death penalty given the result of Pavlinacs trial, pleaded no contest to murder and kidnapping charges in March of 1991 and was sentenced to life in prison. Pavlinac was found guilty for her 'crime' - being an accessory to rape and murder. He felt scared, and unprepared, but looking out over the playing field, he saw no other choice. As soon as it ended, he started motions on an aggravated murder case--two men who killed a woman over her automobile. Laverne claimed to have then tied a rope around the womans neck while John allegedly sexually assaulted her before strangling her to death. McIntyre punched a button on his phone. Sometimes he thought he should have been a Jesuit. Investigators installed a hidden recording device in their home hoping to catch Sosnovske making incriminating statements. By then inundated with briefs and investigative documents, he conceded that Pavlinac and Sosnovske indeed were innocent. At home, the disarray looked even worse. From news articles, she knew the spot was 1.5 miles from Vista House, before Latourell Falls. What comes next after Texas school shooting? Keith Hunter Jesperson - more widely known by his nickname - turned himself in after committing a further six murders. The truth must be told on this case as God is my witness, he wrote. Chris Peterson who decided they should once more search the Sandy River area where Keith Jesperson claimed to have scattered the contents of Bennetts purse. She even said we could search the house, but we thought we should get a search warrant.. However, the truth only came to light when Keith Hunter Jesperson was arrested on an unrelated murder charge in 1995 and claimed responsibility for Taunjas murder. Minutes later, they brought in Jesperson. Plump and homey, 57, short graying hair, blue eyes, soft, round face. McIntyre waded in slowly, the matter at first remaining on his periphery. Their investigation almost hinted at Johns innocence when Laverne decided to bring another twist to her story. On Oct. 24, to see if Jesperson somehow knew Pavlinac and Sosnovske, FBI agents called in by the district attorneys office administered independent polygraph exams to Jesperson and Pavlinac. I had been worried about this for a long time. Men werent generally taught how to be single parents, but he would have to learn. First they would hack away the blackberry bushes. They were both convicted and sent to prison in 1991, based almost completely on Laverne's accusations and the fact that she had correctly identified the area where the body had been found. They still could convict Pavlinac. . Laverne Pavlinac - Innocents Database of Exonerations - Forejustice That was telling: How could she know what shape to cut? This was the most amazing and perplexing case any of them had ever encountered. Laverne was a victim herself. Passing the exact spot, she noticed the detectives unconscious body language. By 8 p.m., after a second test, the examiner put it unequivocally: Sosnovske killed Taunja Bennett. Watch the full story on "20/20" THIS FRIDAY at 9 p.m. We must undo this wrong. We have made a mistake, McIntyre and Schrunk declared, standing before Presiding Circuit Judge Paul Libscomb. Please enable scripts and reload this page. If it were me Id explore this, Phelan advised. Laverne Cox Opens Up About Suicide Attempt, Being Bullied As A Child. . cannot later be simply set aside by some other judge. McIntyre grew animated. Once more, a person seemingly had details only the killer could know. All during the negotiations, hed been telling Meisenheimer they were giving away too much. Sosnovske was threatening her whole family. Sosnovske pleaded no contest to the killing of Taunja Bennett, believing it would steer him clear of the death sentence. He sent a letter to the authorities laden with smiley faces, bragging about his '90s killing spree and simply admitting he was 'done killing'. When he climbed into Rileys car, he saw a body in the back of the car, wrapped in a blanket. The body was one of a white female adult. He didnt know how she was killed; he didnt ask Riley. A Canadian-born long-haul truck driver and divorced father of three, Jesperson carried out his killings over the course of five years until he turned himself in to authorities in 1995. I used to support the death penalty. I got into a bad situation and got caught up with emotion. Still, McIntyre couldnt help wonder: Why didnt Sosnovske just say What are you talking about, I wasnt there? First he doesnt know Taunja, then he flunks a polygraph, then he says he does know Taunja. Youre on Jesperson full time. They visited Pavlinac that morning, Ingram explained, right after the state crime lab advised them about the fake evidence. The Truth About Keith Jesperson's First Murder - Grunge The detectives swung into action. Thats why Phelan had been so eager to deal. Was she making all this up to get rid of Sosnovske? Pavlinac later changed her story, however, and said that the two of them had met Bennett at a Portland bar and that Sosnovske forced her to help him rape Bennett and dispose of the body. 20/20 'Happy Face Killer' The False Confession Of Laverne Pavlinac Pavlinac had confessed to helping kill Bennett in 1990, then recanted, testifying that she had lied in an attempt to escape her abusive relationship with Sosnovske. Who Killed Her? Chris Peterson to the Clark County Jail. For a while, the prosecutors held back. McIntyre recoiled, but forced his hand up; he needed this mans cooperation. Sosnovskes release was relatively easy: Libscomb ruled that his constitutional rights had been violated because Pavlinac, while wired for sound by the police, had tried to get him to admit guilt. Jesperson refused. In January of 1991 she was convicted of felony murder by a jury in Multnomah County Circuit Court. "I think what happened to mother was she was in an abusive relationship, and she was desperate, and desperate people do desperate things, not to say that it was right, but that's what I think happened," said Pavlinac's daughter Bonne McAlpine. She couldnt protect Sosnovske anymore. Nonetheless, upon leaving the sheriffs office, McIntyre drove with Det. Hes an alcoholic, hes moody, he physically abuses her. Laverne Pavlinac and John Sosnovske were romantically involved for some time, although the show claims the former deemed the relationship quite abusive. They drove east from Vista House, then stopped. . But Pavlinac claimed she knew where she and Sosnovske had left Bennett's body in the Columbia Gorge outside of town, and took investigators to the exact remote wooded area where Bennett was found. Something about a guy whos confessing to a case we already have a conviction on. Clark County hadnt called him, Clark County had talked to the press instead. She opened her door, greeted them warmly--and sighed deeply at what they had to say. Days later, on February 5, the police received a call from Laverne wherein she claimed to have overheard John boast about killing Taunja. Nine of the jurors actually wanted the more serious charge of aggravated murder. I got exposed to liars. It appeared to McIntyre that she was making cow eyes at her former roommate. "He says, 'Because I choked her' I said, 'I think weneed to take her to a hospital. She made a pot of coffee, talked about her family. The second letter, sent to the Oregonian newspaper, was a little harder to dismiss. But he was able to briefly escape detection for Bennet's rape and murder because a local woman named Laverne Pavlinac falsely confessed to the crime shortly after it happened. I dont know what happened.. Mike Schrunk, as a result, no longer was just asking questions. Bennett was found strangled to death near a scenic overlook at the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon. That notion drew a caustic laugh from McIntyre. Why did she confess? Most of all Laverne Pavlinacs confession. We have the wrong people in jail, he told Schrunk. McIntyre never wavered. That irritated him. McIntyre stared out his office window at a steady rain. A search failed to turn up incriminating evidence. McIntyre still remembered the detectives expressions that gloomy afternoon. Laverne Pavlinac and John Sosnovske were released from prison two months after the real killer confessed.
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