Facebook Ken Kratz considers Kathleen Zellner's evidence "junk science."
Ken Kratz, the former district attorney for Calumet County in Wisconsin, quickly gained prominence for trying the infamous Wisconsin v. Steven Avery case that the original 2015 Making a Murderer documentary was based on.
Now, with season two of Making a Murderer fresh on everyone’s mind, many who were on the side of the prosecution are coming under renewed scrutiny by fans who believe Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey to be innocent.
Kratz recently responded to a series of questions about his thoughts on the second season of Making a Murderer, Avery’s defense attorney Kathleen Zellner, and the new evidence she has dug up since taking over Avery’s appeal. Here’s what you need to know:
Kratz Continues to Claim The Series Deliberately Left Out Key Pieces of Evidence
Kratz’s role in the Steven Avery case has been the subject of much debate since the series first debuted. Kratz reportedly refused to cooperate with producers or interviewers during the filming of the series, and he later criticized them, claiming they had deliberately left out key pieces of evidence.
Kratz recently responded to a series of questions from USA Today Network-Wisconsin about the second season of the docu-series, slamming Kathleen Zellner, Steven Avery’s defense attorney, for the new evidence that she claims to have regarding Avery’s innocence. Kratz claimed Part 2 of the series left out critical evidence in his reasoning against Avery and stated the first season did the same, and called her evidence “junk science.”
“The second season, unfortunately, uses the same playbook as Season 1: deceptive editing, the omission of crucial evidence and personal attacks against the prosecutors, cops, and Teresa’s friends, which combine for a very one-sided view,” he said.
Kratz has appeared on a variety of television programs and radio programs over the last few years to express his criticisms of the first season of Making A Murderer, including ABC News, Dr. Phil, Nancy Grace, Jim and Sam Show, Crime Watch Daily, and Dr. Oz.
“Most of [the] honest men and women of Wisconsin law enforcement [involved in the Halbach case] were never interviewed for the Netflix docu-drama Making a Murderer,” Kratz told The Post Crescent, “and if depicted in that series at all, it was to blatantly accuse them of everything from planting evidence to murdering Ms. Halbach themselves. Finally, it looks like the truth will come out.”
He Called Kathleen Zellner’s New Evidence “Junk Science” & Claims The Wisconsin Courts Regard Her Research Tactics as a Joke
During his conversation with USA Today Network – Wisconsin, he mentions Zellner’s research tactics, and her attempts to discredit the prosecution’s crime scene evidence that was used to convict Avery, calling her new evidence a “joke,” and claiming the Wisconsin courts don’t take her seriously. He also claims her interests in exonerating Avery are just a publicity stunt.
“The audience is never told that Attorney Zellner’s ‘new evidence’ was little more than junk science, with its results having so little relevance to the contested issues that the court rejected them without even needing an evidentiary hearing,” he told USA Today. “Most legal experts in Wisconsin view Attorney Zellner’s ‘new evidence’ as a joke. I’m not sure how many times she needs to be thrown out of court before she admits her promises of identifying the ‘real killer’ was nothing but a desperate publicity stunt.”
He continued: “There’s an old saying that when you have the law on your side, pound the law; when you have the facts on your side, pound the facts; when you have neither, pound the table. That’s Kathleen Zellner.”
Kratz Also Doesn’t Understand Why He is Still a Major Target For The “Vitriol & Hate” Brought on By The Show
Kratz mentioned that he finds it “unsettling” that he is still still the target of so much hate, as he hasn’t been involved with the case for several years. He still believes that Brendan Dassey and Steven Avery murdered Halbach, despite the fact that many viewers of the show believe Kratz and his team got it wrong.
“I find it unsettling that I remain the lightning rod for the vitriol and hate stirred up by this TV show,” he said. “I’m the one attorney no longer involved in either case, yet Attorney Zellner and the show’s producers continue to claim Ken Kratz bears responsibility for Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey still being in prison. I didn’t make these men murderers—I convicted them.”
Although the second part of Making a Murderer features some clips of Kratz’s life since the first season debuted, the attorney has tweeted that he is far more interested in the 2019 documentary Convicting a Murderer, which Deadline reports is a follow-up to Making a Murderer, but with the story retold from the point of view of the prosecution.
He continues to express the same feelings to this day, often criticizing the series on his personal Twitter and Facebook pages. “Every court in the US has now reaffirmed both Avery and Dassey’s guilt – what can they say?” he tweeted last month. “I can’t wait for the other side to finally come out.”
You can read Kratz entire conversation with USA Today Network – Wisconsin here.
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