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Full Appeals Court Will Hear Brendan Dassey Appeal, 2016 Decision Vacated

By Jim Hagerty
Published on: 11:24 PST, Aug 4, 2017

The push to free Making a Murderer subject Brendan Dassey suffered a setback on Friday, as the U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals granted the State of Wisconsin its request to hear the case en banc.

The decision comes almost two months after a three-judge panel voted 2-1 to uphold a 2016 decision that Dassey was coerced when he confessed to a role in the 2005 killing of Auto Trader photographer Teresa Halbach. The panel also ruled that no physical evidence connected Dassey to the crime scene.

Lawyers on both sides will make their respective arguments on Tuesday, Sept. 26, in front of all of the court’s active appellate judges.

Dassey’s team, led by Northwestern University professors Steven Drizin and Laura Nirider, unsuccessfully asked the the court to release him on bond after the June decision, but the state objected. Wisconsin argued that Dassey should remain imprisoned and that the full court should hear the case because the 2016 ruling hamstrings police, a common argument in the criminal appeals process.

Friday’s news sparked a hailstorm of social media comments among Dassey supporters, along with those championing for his uncle, Steven Avery’s, freedom.

“I know it’s the legal system and it’s slow and jacked beyond repair but come on now! It just feels so horribly unfair at this point. My heart indeed breaks once again for Brendan and his family,” a Facebook user posted.

Among Dassey supporters on Reddit, the sentiments were the same.

“Will any of these people ever just stop and do the right thing?? Does that guy’s rights to a fair shake mean anything to any of them?” one Redditor said.

Dassey’s lawyers could not be reached for comment by this writer. Former Calumet County District Attorney Ken Kratz, who prosecuted Dassey in 2007, weighed in though. A staunch opponent of the unbalanced docu-series, Kratz praised Nirider, yet insinuated that her work is far from complete.

“September 26 will be interesting. Laura N. did an AWESOME job with her last argument…but now the audience will be harsh,” Kratz said on Twitter.

Social media was also rife with chatter among those who believe Dassey and Avery are guilty as charged, and Friday’s decision only fueled the worldwide debate among millions since Making a Murderer hit Netflix in December of 2015.

“It’s nice to see that other members of the 7th circuit understand their duty to uphold the law rather than to create law to fit their personal convictions,” Redditor ScousePie posted. “Justice for Teresa Halbach.”

If the full Seventh Circuit upholds Dassey’s conviction, his lawyers could bring the case the U.S. Supreme Court. An unsuccessful argument there would keep him in prison until he is first eligible for parole in 2048.

If the court decides his confession was coerced, Dassey could be set free or retried. Dassey was days from release last November before the state was granted an emergency order to keep him locked up.

Nirider and Drizin and local counsel Robert Dvorak have represented Dassey since 2007. The team appears in Season 1 of Making a Murderer and is expected to be part of the second run.

Steven Avery is also waiting for the next step in his bid for release. His case has been brought back to Wisconsin and a special prosecutor assigned, as lawyer Kathleen Zellner prepares to present her post-conviction arguments. Zellner included a cannonade of allegations in a June 7 motion for a new trial. She claims police unwittingly worked with Halbach’s killer to frame Avery and that Kratz violated his rights.

Avery is serving life without parole.

[Featured Image by Eric Young/AP Images]

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