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Comprehensive Timeline Of Events

Here is a comprehensive timeline of events starting from August 2, 1983 up to June 6th 2014 detailing Steven Avery, Teresa Halbach and everybody else involved with the Steven Avery case.

This timeline was created by sandmanviscera with the help of other Redditors.

Feel free to correct me on anything if I’m wrong or if you want to add to the timeline. Just make sure you give me a tl;dr FIRST if you’re gonna hit me with a brick of text. Do some research before asking me to add anything. I need; dates, times, and something to verify the information.

The new information added is based on new information regarding TH’s cell phone records. All references used to compile this are listed at the bottom.

You can also check out the trial transcript timeline – http://pastebin.com/T9bY9E0c[1] 

Aug. 2, 1983

• Gregory Allen stalks a woman walking in front of him. He pulls his shorts down, begins masturbating and then lunges at the woman. The woman gets away and calls the police who arrest Allen. Allen later calls the woman twice at her home and asks her to drop the charges against him. The prosecutor against Allen is Denis Vogel. The charges were reduced from indecent exposure to disorderly conduct.

Jan ?? 1985

• Steven Avery was charged with endangering safety and felon gun possession when he ran his cousin who is also the wife of a part-time Manitowoc County sheriff off the road and pointed a rifle at her. When Avery spotted the woman’s infant daughter in the backseat, he backed off. He was later sentenced to six years in prison for this crime.

July 17, 1985

• The City of Manitowoc Police Department assigns officers to conduct daily surveillance on Allen. He was identified as a suspect in several complaints of prowling, window peeping, indecent exposure and sexual assault dating back to January of 1985 through July 14.
• “He is a dangerous individual with a potential for violence,” a police report stated.

July 29, 1985

3:50pm

• Manitowoc PD surveillance on Allen was interrupted that day. He was unsupervised at the time of the assault.
• Penny Ann Beernsten is attacked while jogging alone along the Lake Michigan shoreline north of Two Rivers by a scraggly haired man in a leather jacket. The man pulled out a knife and forced her into a wooded area. He sexually assaulted her, beat her and left her bloodied.
• At the hospital, Beernsten described her rapist.
• Deputy Sheriff Judy Dvorak made a comment that the attacker sounded like Steven Avery.
• Because of this statement, Manitowoc County Sheriff Tom Kocourek asks for Avery’s photo to be included in a photo lineup.
• Before the photo lineup, Thomas Kocourek renders a composite drawing. Potentially from Avery’s photo.
• From her hospital bed, the victim reviews nine photos. Avery’s photo was in the middle.
• After she identifies Avery, the sheriff tells her he was going to arrest him. (The photo line up did not include her attacker Gregory Allen.)
• Three days later, Avery is identified a second time in a live photo lineup of suspects. (Allen, the real rapist, is not included in this lineup.)

Dec. 14, 1985

• Avery maintains his innocence. At trial, he produces 16 alibi witnesses. Receipts and employees at the ShopKo store in Green Bay confirmed Avery was inside the store at 5:13 p.m., — 75 minutes after the rape occurred. Still, Vogel and Kocourek were convinced Avery raped the victim.
• The jury finds Avery guilty of attempted first-degree murder, first-degree sexual assault and false imprisonment.

Mar. 10, 1986

• Manitowoc County Circuit Judge Fred Hazlewood sentences Avery to 32 years in prison.

Aug. 5, 1987

• A Wisconsin appeals court rejects Avery’s bid to overturn his convictions.

1994-1995

• Sergeant Andrew Colborn receives a call from a Brown county detective stating that he had someone in custody claimeing that Manitowoc county was holding someone in custody for a crime he committed.

Sep. 23, 1996

• Hazlewood denies Avery’s bid for a new trial based on newly discovered evidence that show scrapings taken from under the rape victim’s fingernails did not contain Avery’s DNA.

Aug. 5, 1997

• An appeals court upholds Hazlewood’s 1996 decision.

Apr. 3, 2002

• Hazlewood grants the Wisconsin Innocence Project permission to conduct new DNA testing, citing scientific advances made in DNA testing.

Sep. 10, 2003

• The state crime lab tests 13 hairs recovered from the victim back in 1985. None match Avery. One matches Allen, who is now serving a 60-year prison sentence in Green Bay for a rape that occurred in Brown County.
• The criminal complaint against Allen for the Aug. 2, 1983 beach incident was contained in Vogel’s file for the 1985 case against Avery.

Sep. 11, 2003

• Avery is freed from prison after spending 18 years locked away for a rape he did not commit.
• Back in society, Avery moves into a trailer in rural Manitowoc County with a new girlfriend. He also works at his family’s local salvage yard.

Sep. 12, 2003

• Andrew Colborn contacts his superior officer James Lenk to tell him about the 1995 Brown county detective call. Lenk tells him to write a report.
• The sheriff Kenneth Peterson puts the report in his safe.

Sep. 19, 2003

• Wisconsin Attorney General Peg Lautenschlager assigns the Wisconsin Department of Justice to investigate the Avery case.

Dec. ??, 2003

• Avery Task Force begins hearings to review police and prosecutorial practices statewide. Steven is the first to testify

Dec. 19, 2003

• A DOJ report finds no basis for bringing criminal charges or ethics violations against those Manitowoc County Sheriff’s officials and prosecutors involved in securing Avery’s wrongful conviction.

Sep. 11, 2004

• News segment asks Steven Avery if there is any way you can forgive the people that put you in prison and he says “i doubt it”.

Oct. 12, 2004

• Attorney Walt Kelley, of Milwaukee, files a federal lawsuit in U.S. District Court on behalf of Avery. The suit seeks $36 million from Manitowoc County, Kocourek and Vogel (both are no longer in office).

Sep. 22, 2005

• Manitowoc County District Attorney Mark Rohrer deposed for the lawsuit.

Oct. ??, 2005

• Legislators move forward on a draft bill to compensate Steven for his wrongful conviction. The expectation is that he will receive $400,000 which would also make it unlikely he’d settle his lawsuit.

Oct. 3?, 2005

• Teresa’s professor notices that Teresa is getting phone calls that she is ignoring.

Oct. 11, 2005

• Lieutenant James Lenk deposed.

Oct. 11, 2005

• Sandy Morriss deposed.

Oct. 13, 2005

• Deputy Judy Dvorak deposed. She admits to saying that the description Penny Bernstein gave of her assailant sounded like Steven Avery.
• Sergeant Andrew Colborn deposed. He admits to receiving a call from a detective in Brown county that had a person in custody claiming ownership for a crime that someone in Manitowoc was being held for.
• Sheriff Kenneth Peterson deposed.

Oct. 26, 2005

• Chief Deputy Eugene Kusche deposed. He is skeptical that Gregory Allen committed the crime of assaulting Penny Bernstein. He drew the image of the assailant and agreed it looks more like Steven Avery than Gregory Allen. “I am just the pencil” is how he explains why he’s not responsible for the result of his work.
• Gene also was asked to provide commentary on his previous statement where he said that the Sheriff Tom Kocourek told Colborn “we already have the right guy and he should not concern himself” in regards to the Brown detective informing Colborn of the mistake in 1995. Gene’s previous statement also said that James Lenk was aware of this call.

Oct. 30, 2005

• Teresa Halbach has an encounter with her ex boyfriend Ryan Hillegas. Ryan says he definitely saw her that day, but says he does not recall what time or part of the day
• Steven Avery’s girlfriend goes to jail on her 5th DUI.

Oct. 31, 2005

8.12am

• Steven Avery calls AutoTrader “to request the photographer who had been out to the property previously.” to photograph a van his sister Barb had for sale. He gives his sister’s name and phone number instead of his own.

11:27am-12:51pm

• 8 Calls made to TH’s phone. (Cell Phone Location A – 21112 54027 – Teresa’s Home?)  [2] 

11:43am

• Halbach calls Barb’s phone to leave a message that she will be there sometime after 2pm that day

1:30pm

• Halbach arrives at Schmitz residence to take a car photo around 1:30pm.

1:52pm

• 1 call made to TH’s phone (Cell Phone Location B – 21103 54086 – ?) What’s this? [3] 

2:00pm

• Halbach arrives at Zipperer’s residence to take a car photo around 2:00pm.

2:12pm-2:24pm

• Steven Avery makes 3 calls to TH’s phone(Cell Phone Location C – 21923 54096 – ?)  [4] 

2:27pm

• Auto Trader calls TH’s phone. Halbach answers and tells them she is 10 minutes away from Steven Avery’s residense.(Cell Phone Location D – 21921 54096 – ?) [5] 

2:30pm-2:45pm

• Bobby Dassey testifies that he saw TH arrive and take pictures of the van before walking toward Steven Avery’s trailer.
• Bobby says he went inside to shower and when he came back out to go bow hunting he saw the Rav-4 but not TH.

2:41pm

• 1 call made to TH’s phone. Phone options are set to forward all incoming calls to voice mail some time prior to this call. (Location E – 21101 54096 – ?) What’s this? 

3:00pm

• Scott Tadych testifies that while he was out hunting he saw Bobby Dassey on the highway before 3:00 (though he told police at the time that he went home rather than hunting).

3:30pm-3:40pm

• A bus driver testifies she sees TH taking pictures of a van on the Avery property and Steven Avery walking towards his trailer when she dropped off Brendan and Blaine Dassey from school.
• Steven Avery said in a statement that TH was there for about 10 minutes.

3:30pm

• Jon Leurquin, who delivers propane for Valders Co-op testified that he fills his truck with propane near Avery’s property. He usually fuels up at about 3:30pm for about a half hour.Leurquin says he seen THs Rav 4 leave the property. He didn’t see who was driving it.

3:45pm

• Brendan Dassey testifies that after getting home from school he went in the house and played Playstation 2 while his brother Blaine called his friends to see who was going Trick-R-Treating until their mother came home.

4:00pm

• Brendan testifies that his brother Blaine can verify he was home at that time.(Was it verified?)

4:21pm

• Laura Schadrie a Cingular engineer testifies that all activity on Halbach’s phone ceases at this time.

4:35pm

• Laura Schadrie testifies Halbach’s phone records show she got a call at 4:35 p.m. that lasted 13 seconds but she couldn’t tell if it was answered or went into voice mail.

4:35pm-6:42pm(Nov. 1)

• 7 calls(including above call) made to TH’s phone, all from Chicago, IL.

5:00-5:30

• Brendan testifies his mother comes home from work and then leaves to go to the hospital to visit Scott’s mother some time before 6:00pm.
• Blaine is picked up by his friend’s mother some time after his mother leaves.
• Brendan watches TV in the living room until 6:00pm.

5:30pm

• Steven Avery’s girlfriend Jodi calls from jail at about 5:30. They speak for about 15 minutes.

5:41pm

• Sunset.

6:00pm

• Brendan testifies he answers a phone call from Blaine’s boss and explains to him that Blaine went Trick-R-Treating.
• Brendan continues to watch TV in the living room until 7:00.

7:00pm

• Brendan answers a phone call from Steven Avery. Steven invites him over for a bonfire that he’s having which Brendan accepts.

7:00pm-9:00pm

• Brendan and Steven ride around on a golf cart around his mother’s house to look for junk to throw on the fire.

8:45pm

• Scott Tadych testifies thatThe flames of the bonfire at around 8:45pm. were “almost as tall as the garage, 10 feet tall, maybe.” The defense brought up that his original statement said that the flames were only 3 ft tall.

9:00pm

• Brendan testifies his mother called Steven’s cell phone after getting home to make sure Brendan had either a jacket or sweater on and to send him home at 10:00pm.
• Brendan and Steven stood by the fire until 10:00pm.

9:30pm

• Steven Avery’s girlfriend calls again at around 9:30. They speak for about 15 minutes.

10:00pm

• Brenden testifies he went home and talked to his mother about Scott’s mother who was in the hospital and whether she was alright.

Nov. 1, 2005

• The Avery bill passes the state legislature.
• Halbach doesn’t show up to work.

Nov. 2, 2005

• Halback doesn’t show up to work.

Nov. 3, 2005

??:??

• TH’s parents report her missing.

??:??

• Colborn is recorded talking to dispatch and asking them to run the plate SWH582. This plate belongs to the missing person Teresa Halbach as the dispatch says. Colborn then asks “99 Toyota?” and dispatch responds “Yep”. He denies being the presence or seeing the plates/car. He cannot explain why he called the plate in. He says “I shouldn’t have been and I was not looking at the license plate”

Nov. 4, 2005

??:??

• There were two helicopters flying low over the Avery lot taking pictures, Eagle ll Rescue and a Police Chopper.

??:??

• Brendan was informally interviewed by police. When questioned Brendan tells police that he never saw TH after getting off the bus and didn’t know anything about her until seeing the news about her missing on TV.

??:??

• The Halbach family begins looking at TH’s phone records and financial transactions and they begin hanging/distributing missing person posters.
• Action 2 news at 5PM. SWH582 1999 Toyota Rav 4 1999 shown in the report. Teresa Halbach was at 3 different private homes taking pictures of cars for Auto Trader. Last stop was at Steven Avery’s home. She was there to photograph a Red 1989 Dodge Caravan. Steven says Teresa Haibach has been there several times in the past year. Steven says that police didn’t ask him for a polygraph but they did ask to come in and check the house and he let them.
• Karen and Mike Halbach interviewed. Karen says “It’s very odd that we didn’t hear from her for 2 days when she didn’t return calls, you know?”. Mike says that after the 3rd stop is when she stopped answering the phone or stopped making calls. “She hadn’t listened to any voicemails after that. She didn’t make any credit card transactions. So we don’t know what happened after that.” “The grieving process you know could last days, could last weeks, could last years. You know, hopefully, we find answers as soon as possible so we can, you know, begin to hopefully, you know, move on, hopefully with Teresa still in our life.”
• Ryan Hillegas, Teresa’s ex-boyfriend to a search group: “If you do find anything, say you find the truck, say you talk to somebody that has seen her or made contact or knows her whereabouts or anything, don’t touch anything. Make s.. It’s very important, I guess. Um, don’t touch anything. Get a hold of either the detective or dispatch in Chilton, and just, you know, tell them you’re really concerned and you found this and they can take care of getting a hold of who we need to.”
• Ryan Hillegas appears to have 3 scratch marks on his left hand during the interview. What’s this?[7] 
• November 4?, 2005 – Mike Haibach interviewed again: “I don’t know what to hope. I don’t know if you want to find a vehicle and you know, she’s there. I don’t know if you want to find nothing and hope that she’s somewhere still, um.. alive. You know, we don’t know what to.. I don’t know what to hope.”

Nov. 5, 2005

10:30am

• Pam Sturm(former private investigator) discovers Halbach’s SUV inside the Avery Auto Salvage yard after about 15 minutes of searching.
• She called police to say she’s found a Rav 4.
• She’s asked and confirms that there are no plates on it and that it’s a little covered up. Last for digits of the vin are 3044. She tells the police she’s at Avery Salvage.

11:00am

• First officer responds, arrives at Avery property. Sometime between 11am-2pm a command post is set up on Avery property.

2:00pm

• Special Agent Tom Fassbender arrives and is appointed lead investigator.
• Begin applying for search warrants

??:??

• After the Pam Strum call: Officer 1: “Other than the car do we have anything else?” Officer 2: “Not yet.” Officer 1: ”Is he in custody?” Officer 2: ”Negative, nothing yet.”

??:??

-Search warrants obtained for Avery property – An 8 day search begins. Steven Avery is not allowed on his property. – Officers do “protective sweep” of property – Search with dogs, aggressive dog behind trailer prevents search of “burn pit” area. – Command post debrief – 1 evidence team searches SA trailer – Cadaver dogs hit on TH’s SUV. – Searched all 4000 junked cars, multiple times.

??:??

• Police impound Halbach’s vehicle and take it to the Wisconsin crime lab.

??:??

• District Attorney Mark Rohrer in a press conference hands over the investigation to Calumet Count District attorney Ken Kratz to avoid the appearance of impropriety.

Nov. 6, 2005

??:??

• Brendan Dassey second informal police interview.

??:??

• Mike Halbach says “A hundred percent of my hopes are with finding Teresa. When we last heard she was alive Monday afternoon. And until we hear otherwise that’s what we’re going to believe.”

??:??

• Junked cars all searched again.
• Garage searched 1st time (was only swept on 5th)
• Aggressive dog still preventing thorough search.
• .22 caliber Marlin Glenfield semi-automatic rifle seized from gun rack on Steven Avery’s bedroom wall.

Nov. 8. 2005

??:??

• Human cremains found on Steven Avery’s property

??:??

• TH’s spare key for her Rav-4(not her regular set of keys) was found in Steven Avery’s trailer by James Lenk in a spot that had previously been checked.

??:??

• Teresa’s license plates are found in a junked vehicle on the path on the way to Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey’s residence. They were located by William Brandes a volunteer firefighter, who had been teamed up in search teams with law enforcement officers.

??:??

• From Sheriff Pagel at a press conference: Investigation is changed to criminal homicide investigation. Pieces of human bone and teeth were found on the Avery property. The key that was used to start her vehicle was also found in Steven Avery’s bedroom. reemphasizes that Manitowoc’s only role was to provide resources when needed. Makes a reference to items being provided and this is the only scope.

??:??

• Crime lab finds 6 male blood spots in TH’s Rav 4 and significant amount of female blood in cargo area.
• Hundreds of officers & citizens search Avery property.
• Burn barrel just outside Steven Avery’s residence discovered for first time.

Nov. 9, 2005

• Authorities arrest Steven Avery for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
• Steven Avery’s attorney Walt Kelley cannot find him despite making attempts and talking to Sheriff Pagel.
• Mark Wiegert and Andrew Fassbender interview Steven Avery about the murder without a lawyer present. Steven Avery denies involvement.
  • Lab determines bones are human and female

Nov. 10, 2005

• Deposition was scheduled for Sheriff Tom Kocourek on this day but it did not happen.
• Jerry Pagel announces that Halbach’s bone fragments, teeth, camera and cellphone pieces are found in a burn pit near Steven Avery’s trailer.
• Ken Kratz announces that Steven Avery’s DNA is found on the key and from blood in the Rav-4

Nov. 11 2005

• Female blood in SUV matched to TH.

Nov. 12 2005

11:30am?pm?

• Law enforcement leaves Avery property.

Nov. 15, 2005

• Deposition was scheduled for District Attorney of Manitowoc County Denis Vogel but it did not happen.
• Ken Kratz announces that Steven Avery’s blood was found inside of TH’s vehicle.

Nov. 19, 2005

• Teresa Halbach’s funeral.

Nov. 29, 2005

• Scott Tadych is interviewed by police.
• Around that same time Tadych was trying to sell Bobby Dassey’s .22 caliber rifle to a man named Jay Mathis at work

Jan. 17, 2006

• Avery pleads not guilty and insists he is innocent.

Jan. 19, 2006

• An FBI laboratory determines that the remains found at the Avery salvage yard are Halbach.

Feb. 27, 2006

• First formal police interview with Brendan, first at the high school then at the police department.

Mar. ??, 2006

• In March of 2006, an employee at the Madison bureau of the lab was suspended for being “intoxicated” on the job. What’s this?[8] 

Mar. 1, 2006

• Second formal police interview with Brendan.
• Another Search warrant issued for Avery property.
• Handcuffs and leg irons found.
• Taken into evidence: Brendan’s jacket, shoes, and bleached jeans.
• 2 bullets found in garage, one has TH’s DNA.

Mar 2, 2006

• Authorities arrest Brendan Dassey and charge him with homicide, mutilation of a corpse, and sexual assault.

Mar. 8, 2006

• Special prosecutor Kratz also charges Avery with kidnapping, false imprisonment and sexual assault with a dangerous weapon.

Mar. 30, 2006

• Scott Tadych in an interview with calumet county sheriffs department was described as; short tempered, angry, and capable of murder.

Apr 3, 2006

• Swabs taken from TH’s Rav-4 hood.

May 13, 2006

• Third formal police interview with Brendan.

Dec. 20, 2006

• Dean Strang and Jerome Buting find an 11-year-old vial of Steven Avery’s blood. The vial was not sealed. It was inside an unsealed Styrofoam box, inside an unsealed cardboard box.

Jan. 29, 2007

• As part of a pretrial ruling, Manitowoc County Circuit Judge Patrick Willis dismisses two of the criminal charges against Avery, first-degree sexual assault and kidnapping.

Jan. 30, 2007

• Willis rules that Avery’s lawyers are free to tell the jury about the old vial of Avery’s blood.

Feb. 2, 2007

• Willis denies a request by Avery’s lawyers to delay the trial to allow testing on the 1996 sample of Avery’s blood to bolster the defense’s theory that Avery is being framed by the Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Office for Halbach’s murder.

Feb. 9, 2007 – March 18, 2007

• A jury of Manitowoc County residents hear the Avery jury trial. The trial is held in Chilton at the Calumet County Courthouse.
• The trial included 19 days of testimony from 59 witnesses.
• Avery’s lawyers contend that Manitowoc County sheriff’s officers planted evidence against him in retaliation for a lawsuit Avery filed against the county seeking $36 million for the wrongful conviction.
• After being charged with murder, Avery settled the $36 million lawsuit for about $400,000. He needed the money to pay for private defense lawyers in Halbach’s case.

Mar 18, 2007

• The Manitowoc County jury of six men and six women deliberate for nearly 22 hours over three days. The jury finds Avery guilty of intentional homicide and being a felon in possession of a firearm. The jury acquitted Avery of mutilation of a corpse.

Apr. 16, 2007 – Apr 25, 2007

• Brendan Dassey trial takes place.

Apr. 25, 2007

• A Dane County jury found Brendan guilty in the rape, murder and mutilation of Halbach.

Jun 1, 2007

• Avery is sentenced to life imprisonment with no chance for parole in connection with Halbach’s death.

Aug. 2, 2007

• Brendan is sentenced to life in prison.
• He becomes eligible for parole in 2048 after serving 41 years.

Aug. 24, 2011

• Avery’s murder conviction is upheld by the 2nd District Court of Appeals.

Jan. 30 2013

• A state Court of Appeals rejected a request from Dassey, Avery’s nephew, to get a new trial.

Aug. 1, 2013

• The Wisconsin Supreme Court denied Dassey’s bid to review the case.

Jun 6, 2014

• Kenneth Kratz’s law license was suspended for four months by the Wisconsin Supreme Court. During the disciplinary hearing, Kratz admitted abusing prescription drugs and being treated for sexual addiction.

—————————————————————————————————

This timeline helps put a lot of things into perspective and can answer a lot of key questions surrounding certain timeframes and events.

They did an awesome job on putting this timeline together!

Do you know of anything that can be added to the timeline? Are there any corrections that should be made to the timeline? Comment or send me a message!

-TID

theinspiringdad.com

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