Steven Avery has captured the nation's attention thanks to a little documentary by Netflix. Viewers (myself included) are eating up Making a Murderer [1], and it's almost impossible not to crave more information after you've zipped through the whole show. Over the course of ten episodes, Avery is falsely convicted of a heinous crime, spends 18 years in prison before being exonerated, then after several years living freely, he's convicted of an even more horrendous crime. If you're hoping for a story that neatly ties up all its lose ends with a bow, you need to find another show. We're left with so many questions: what really happened to Teresa Halbach [2], and what's going on with Avery's case now? We may never get the answer to the former, but we do know what's transpired with Avery since the series dropped on Netflix.
The Petition
Outraged by the perceived miscarraige of justice displayed in the documentary, fans started petitions at Change.org [3] and The White House's official page [4] to secure a presidential pardon for Avery. Collectively, the petitions gathered nearly 500,000 signatures. A representative from The White House posted an official response [5] on Jan. 8, stating that Avery is invalid for getting a presidential pardon. "This clemency authority empowers the President to exercise leniency towards persons who have committed federal crimes . . . Since Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey are both state prisoners, the President cannot pardon them. A pardon in this case would need to be issued at the state level by the appropriate authorities."
Will He Be Pardoned at the State Level?
Just because he's not eligible for a presidential pardon doesn't mean that he can't seek a pardon at the state level. Unfortunately for Avery, since he came into office in 2011, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has been firm on his stance [6] not to issue any pardons. Walker has already confirmed that he will not be issuing a pardon to Avery [7].
Avery Has Filed a Motion for a New Trial
As of Jan. 12, Avery is still seeking justice. He filed a motion for a new trial, and one of his attorneys showed her support on Twitter, posting [8] "Visit w/Steven Avery at Waupon CC. He is identical to the other 17 innocent men we've cleared. Won't quit until he's out." His previous request for an appeal was thrown out in 2011, but now he's requesting that that ruling be tossed out.
Ken Kratz Is Not at All Happy With the Show
In a (not) shocking twist of events, Avery's prosecuter, Ken Kratz, has publicly spoken out against the series. As anyone who has seen the show can attest to, he's not portrayed in the best of lights, especially when the filmmakers highlight the fact that his license was suspended following an embarrassing sexual harassment scandal [9]. Since the documentary was released, Kratz has said [10] that it has an "agenda," and "really presents misinformation."
As you may have heard, the Yelp page for Kratz's Law Firm [11] has been innundated with bad reviews. It currently has one star.
Related Stories:
- Making a Murderer: 7 Theories About What Really Happened to Teresa Halbach [12]
- Seth Meyers's Making a Murder Parody Will Make You LOL All by Yourself [13]
- You Haven't Lived Until You've Read This Fan Account For Dean Strang [14]
- Why the Internet Is Totally Crushing on These Dreamy Defense Lawyers [15]
- Watch the Trailer For Netflix's New Show That Has Everyone Talking [16]