NEWS

Avery says brothers might have killed Halbach

Assistant district attorney in Manitowoc County tells a Milwaukee TV station law enforcement officials have been receiving threats because of the case

Doug Schneider
USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin

If Steven Avery continues to insist he didn't kill photographer Teresa Halbach, then who does Avery think committed the crime?

Steven Avery is escorted through the halls of the Manitowoc County Courthouse on Jan. 29, 2007 in Manitowoc.

The website TMZ.com, citing court documents, says it has found the answer: Avery's brothers, Charles and Earl.

In a report on its website Wednesday, TMZ says Avery's lawyer filed papers in 2009 claiming Charles Avery "had a history of aggression toward women who visited the family's junkyard" in Manitowoc County. The papers were part of Avery's unsuccessful appeal of his conviction.

The depth of that alleged "history," however, is unclear. State court records online show each man with a misdemeanor conviction in connection with one incident.

Charles E. Avery was sentenced to 120 days in jail after pleading no contest in 1999 to violating a domestic-abuse injunction, a misdemeanor. Two charges alleging similar violations were dismissed. A 1999 charge of third-degree sexual assault was dismissed after Charles Avery met deferred prosecution requirements, court records show.

Earl Avery, meanwhile, pleaded no contest in 1996 to battery and fourth-degree sexual assault in connection with a 1995 case. He was sentenced to 45 days in jail and 200 hours of community service, and ordered to undergo alcohol treatment.

Steven Avery was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of first-degree murder as party to a crime in the 2005 slaying of Halbach, a photographer who had gone to the Avery family's junkyard to photograph vehicles for sale. Brendan Dassey, Avery's then 16-year-old nephew, was convicted of first-degree intentional homicide. The case became the basis for the popular Netflix documentary series "Making a Murderer."

Before Avery's 2007 trial, his lawyers argued that they should be allowed to show that other people, including Avery's brothers, had an opportunity to kill Halbach. But the trial judge denied the request, citing the ruling in State vs. Denny, which said that motive and evidence also had to exist to claim third-party liability. That ruling was upheld by the state Court of Appeals.

Here's a look at other Avery news from around the Web today:

►An assistant district attorney in Manitowoc County tells a Milwaukee TV station that law-enforcement officials have been receiving threats because of the case.

"We`re getting threats," Michael Griesbach told WITI-TV. "The sheriff`s department is getting threats daily."

►Hollywood website TheWrap.com, also citing court documents, says Avery claimed his brothers and others had motive to frame him for Halbach's murder.

►People magazine posted a video of Dassey's four-hour confession on its website. People writes that "Dassey told investigators he had helped Avery kill Halbach, saying that they shot her in the head and burned her body at a bonfire on the Avery property," but that he "later denied that he ever saw Halbach and said he had nothing to do with her murder."

►Social media support for Avery and Dassey continues to grow. This Facebook group has attracted more than 25,000 members.

►The Associated Press published a Q&A about the case and the documentary.

dschneid@greenbaypressgazette.com and follow him on Twitter @PGDougSchneider