MADISON, Wisconsin (AP) -- One of four housemates accused of helping kill a woman and torture the woman's 11-year-old son said the group took its cues from the only man implicated in the case.
"I am not a monster," Candace Clark, 23, told reporters from the Portage Daily Register and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel who interviewed her at Columbia County Jail on Friday night.
She described her boyfriend, Michael Sisk, 25, as the ringleader at the house they rented in Portage, some 40 miles north of Madison.
Clark denied involvement in the killing of 36-year-old Tammie Garlin, whose body police found buried in the yard.
As for the other charges she and three others face, Clark said, "No one's innocent in this."
All four -- Clark, Sisk, Michaela Clerc, 20, and a 15-year-old girl -- are charged with first-degree murder, child abuse, mutilation, hiding a corpse, false imprisonment, aggravated battery, three other felonies and a misdemeanor. The three adults are also charged with contributing to the delinquency of a child.
Earlier Friday, the secretary of the Florida Department of Children and Families called it "unconscionable" that state child welfare workers took four months to alert police that Clark had taken her 2-year-old daughter from a foster home in Florida. The Florida Department of Children and Families is investigating and hopes to have answers next week.
Acting on a tip from Florida detectives, Wisconsin police visited the Portage house on June 14.
They found Clark and her three children, including the 2-year-old, as well as Clerc and Felicia Garlin, Tammie Garlin's teenage daughter. They all gave police false names, according to a criminal complaint.
Police: Injured 11-year-old locked in closet
Police found Tammie Garlin's 11-year-old son, bloody and covered with burns, locked in a closet, and Garlin's body buried in the yard. A preliminary autopsy indicated she had been strangled.
Investigators took the women into custody and captured Sisk later at a Milwaukee bus terminal. Authorities believe all of them were part of a band of identity thieves who crisscrossed the U.S., surviving through financial fraud schemes.
The children were placed in the state's care.
Clark earlier told the Orlando Sentinel from jail that her boyfriend, Sisk, was controlling and considered the group to be a cult. She said she lied to police about her name because she was afraid Sisk might kill her.
"You don't call the police when you and your kids were threatened," Clark said.
Clark says she led police to buried body
Clark refused to tell the newspaper who killed Tammie Garlin, saying only that one person did it. She said she led police to the body.
"That was a burden that I had on my chest that I had to get off," Clark said.
Others in the group took turns beating and torturing the boy, Clark said, calling him unruly. He would bite, kick and punch, and even Tammie Garlin said he had to be disciplined.
Clark called the kidnapping accusations overblown.
She said the foster parents dropped the 2-year-old off at her home in Sanford, Florida, last July and told her they couldn't afford her any longer. She tried calling a caseworker, but never heard from the woman.
Sisk and Clark are both wanted in Colorado -- Sisk for walking away from jail while out on work release and Clark for failing to show up in court for allegedly writing bad checks and stealing a car, prosecutors say.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Friday, June 22, 2007
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Residents Fight For Legislation William Smolinski Jr
Residents Fight For Legislation
by Josh Morgan
Herald Staff
Talk to any mom and you’ll quickly discover there is no stronger force in nature than a mother’s love for her children. It is a force that can turn even the most quiet and reserved woman into an outspoken advocate for change in Connecticut.
Just ask Cheshire resident Janice Smolinski.
The strange story of her son’s disappearance began nearly three years ago, and the flaws the Smolinski family has encountered during the investigation has turned Janice into a different woman.
With her newfound strength, Janice Smolinski spearheaded legislation — with the help of State Rep. Vickie Nardello, D-Prospect — that will change the way missing person cases are handled in Connecticut. The legislation was unanimously approved by both the state House of Representatives and state Senate this session. Last week, Gov. M. Jodi Rell signed the bill. The Smolinskis now hope change in Connecticut, and hopefully across the United States, will be on the way.
“Not only does Connecticut have a problem,” Janice said, “the entire country has a problem.” She believes the law enforcement system is broken when it comes to handling missing persons cases.
Getting changes implemented, however, has been a long and emotional journey that also exposed flaws in the system. Flaws the Smolinski family hope will change. From lost DNA samples to slow responses from the police, Janice’s hopes are that the system will be revamped; a system that she says has treated her family unfairly.
Her story begins on August 24, 2004, the day Janice’s 31-year-old son, William Smolinski Jr., went missing. Billy, as he often was called, asked a neighbor to watch his dog Harley while he was out of town for a few days. When the neighbor went to Billy’s house, the dog was locked inside, but no key had been left out as planned. Immediately the family knew something was wrong. After waiting three days to file a missing persons report, the Waterbury police stepped in. They found Billy’s keys and wallet under the seat of his truck, which was parked in his driveway. Other than that, William Smolinski Sr. said the police weren’t much help. “We had to do everything ourselves,” he said. “We organized our own search parties to look for our son.”
The family offered up DNA samples to the police. But after several weeks, there was still no word. Janice went back to the police department and asked if the DNA had been entered into federal databases like CODIS. CODIS, or Combined DNA Index System, is a universal database that local, state and federal law enforcement agencies can access to help link crimes or to identify remains across the country. They were told it had not been entered, and in fact, were told the department had not even heard of CODIS.
“My wife had to explain how to use the DNA to the police,” William Sr. said. “Imagine that.”
The new act calls for the state’s Police Officer Standards and Training Council to review the way they handle missing person cases and adopt and implement a policy no later than January 1, 2008. Not a lot of attention was paid to Billy’s case since he was a healthy 31-year-old male, but the Smolinskis are hoping that all missing person cases will be handled the same way, regardless of age or sex.
They also hope that law enforcement agencies across the country will have specially trained officers who will be able to help with crisis situations like a missing child.
“Every state needs someone on staff that can help,” Janice said.
Her thoughts were echoed by her husband who said there should be “one or two” trained officers who can “take control of the situation” when needed.
Frustrated at the lack of knowledge the Waterbury Police Department had on DNA, Janice Smolinski wants additional training for officers so they are more knowledgeable on the subject.
“The most important part of this is to educate them on DNA,” she said. “We are in 2007. It’s time to educate.”
U.S. Rep. Christopher Murphy, D-5th District and U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman have both contacted her within the last couple of weeks, and she hopes that, with their help, the legislation can be taken to a federal level.
In addition to the new legislation, Janice wants to put faces of missing persons on playing cards that can be distributed among prisons.
The idea is similar to the “most wanted” playing cards that U.S. soldiers were given in Iraq. In Polk County, Fla., unsolved homicide cards were distributed to 2,500 inmates and fresh leads and tips came in almost immediately for some of the cold cases.
Her husband said cards like these are a great idea and he thinks they would work for missing persons as well. “Criminals like to talk and brag,” he said. “They also might be interested in reward money that they can collect when they get out of jail. Any little tip could help.”
Despite their efforts, there has been no word or sign of Billy Smolinski since August 2004. The Smolinskis are all but certain that he was murdered.
Although their story is ongoing, Janice hopes changes to the system will help other families whose worries might just be starting. “These changes aren’t going to help Billy,” Janice said. “But maybe they will help another family.”
For more information about Billy Smolinski Jr. and his story, visit www.justice4billy.com.
by Josh Morgan
Herald Staff
Talk to any mom and you’ll quickly discover there is no stronger force in nature than a mother’s love for her children. It is a force that can turn even the most quiet and reserved woman into an outspoken advocate for change in Connecticut.
Just ask Cheshire resident Janice Smolinski.
The strange story of her son’s disappearance began nearly three years ago, and the flaws the Smolinski family has encountered during the investigation has turned Janice into a different woman.
With her newfound strength, Janice Smolinski spearheaded legislation — with the help of State Rep. Vickie Nardello, D-Prospect — that will change the way missing person cases are handled in Connecticut. The legislation was unanimously approved by both the state House of Representatives and state Senate this session. Last week, Gov. M. Jodi Rell signed the bill. The Smolinskis now hope change in Connecticut, and hopefully across the United States, will be on the way.
“Not only does Connecticut have a problem,” Janice said, “the entire country has a problem.” She believes the law enforcement system is broken when it comes to handling missing persons cases.
Getting changes implemented, however, has been a long and emotional journey that also exposed flaws in the system. Flaws the Smolinski family hope will change. From lost DNA samples to slow responses from the police, Janice’s hopes are that the system will be revamped; a system that she says has treated her family unfairly.
Her story begins on August 24, 2004, the day Janice’s 31-year-old son, William Smolinski Jr., went missing. Billy, as he often was called, asked a neighbor to watch his dog Harley while he was out of town for a few days. When the neighbor went to Billy’s house, the dog was locked inside, but no key had been left out as planned. Immediately the family knew something was wrong. After waiting three days to file a missing persons report, the Waterbury police stepped in. They found Billy’s keys and wallet under the seat of his truck, which was parked in his driveway. Other than that, William Smolinski Sr. said the police weren’t much help. “We had to do everything ourselves,” he said. “We organized our own search parties to look for our son.”
The family offered up DNA samples to the police. But after several weeks, there was still no word. Janice went back to the police department and asked if the DNA had been entered into federal databases like CODIS. CODIS, or Combined DNA Index System, is a universal database that local, state and federal law enforcement agencies can access to help link crimes or to identify remains across the country. They were told it had not been entered, and in fact, were told the department had not even heard of CODIS.
“My wife had to explain how to use the DNA to the police,” William Sr. said. “Imagine that.”
The new act calls for the state’s Police Officer Standards and Training Council to review the way they handle missing person cases and adopt and implement a policy no later than January 1, 2008. Not a lot of attention was paid to Billy’s case since he was a healthy 31-year-old male, but the Smolinskis are hoping that all missing person cases will be handled the same way, regardless of age or sex.
They also hope that law enforcement agencies across the country will have specially trained officers who will be able to help with crisis situations like a missing child.
“Every state needs someone on staff that can help,” Janice said.
Her thoughts were echoed by her husband who said there should be “one or two” trained officers who can “take control of the situation” when needed.
Frustrated at the lack of knowledge the Waterbury Police Department had on DNA, Janice Smolinski wants additional training for officers so they are more knowledgeable on the subject.
“The most important part of this is to educate them on DNA,” she said. “We are in 2007. It’s time to educate.”
U.S. Rep. Christopher Murphy, D-5th District and U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman have both contacted her within the last couple of weeks, and she hopes that, with their help, the legislation can be taken to a federal level.
In addition to the new legislation, Janice wants to put faces of missing persons on playing cards that can be distributed among prisons.
The idea is similar to the “most wanted” playing cards that U.S. soldiers were given in Iraq. In Polk County, Fla., unsolved homicide cards were distributed to 2,500 inmates and fresh leads and tips came in almost immediately for some of the cold cases.
Her husband said cards like these are a great idea and he thinks they would work for missing persons as well. “Criminals like to talk and brag,” he said. “They also might be interested in reward money that they can collect when they get out of jail. Any little tip could help.”
Despite their efforts, there has been no word or sign of Billy Smolinski since August 2004. The Smolinskis are all but certain that he was murdered.
Although their story is ongoing, Janice hopes changes to the system will help other families whose worries might just be starting. “These changes aren’t going to help Billy,” Janice said. “But maybe they will help another family.”
For more information about Billy Smolinski Jr. and his story, visit www.justice4billy.com.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
DNA and CODIS Solve Decade Old Crime - Missing and Exploited Children
DNA and CODIS Solve Decade Old Crime - Missing and Exploited Children
DNA and CODIS Solve Decade Old Crime
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is the body’s unique biological code which contains the genetic design of each living organism. Each living organism contains an individual DNA profile. DNA stores information about the individual organism. Since a person’s DNA is individualized specifically to that person it can be an identifier in forensic science or cases or paternity. Lately DNA is becoming a household word often heard on the news regarding the arrest, conviction, or release of a person involved in a crime.
Back in the early 50’s James D. Watson and Francis H.C. Crick, were the first biochemists to propose a model for the structure of DNA. Their work in the structure and identification of DNA has opened up a whole new world for science and a Nobel Prize for both men in 1962. In the present their work brings to the forefront of crime a way to identify parents of children and criminals.
Identical twins form when one fertilized egg divides into halves. Identical twins are the only people who have the same DNA. Fraternal twins form when two eggs, fertilized by two different sperm. Fraternal twins have their own individual DNA. The DNA of a fraternal twin is no closer to matching the DNA of the other fraternal twin than any other sibling DNA would match as most siblings and fraternal twins share about 50% of their genes.
Although identical twins have the same DNA genotype, or internal cell DNA, their DNA has different phenotypes or external ways the DNA shows up. In other words, identical twins have individual fingerprints. So, if a serial rapist has an identical twin, law enforcement must find more evidence to use for conviction. A simple fingerprint however can and will distinguish identical twins.
Federal Law requires all convicted felons provide DNA to the Nation’s Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). CODIS essentially takes the best of forensic science and computer technology to compare DNA samples of unsolved violent crimes nationwide. If the DNA evidence collected from a crime scene or crime victim was entered into CODIS, and later a felon’s DNA is entered and it matches law enforcement is notified.
This same simple DNA sample for CODIS is exactly what led to the arrest of a serial rapist in a crime over a decade old in Missouri. The sexual assaults happened from 1996 through 1998. As far as law enforcement knows four girls were assaulted. All the girls were assaulted in their or a home of a friend, while parents or adults slept in rooms other bedrooms of the homes. The girls were age 11 to 17 at the time they were raped.
Charles Joseph Steffani was 54, when he received his sentence of 20 years in prison. This sentence given for sexual assaults committed in June 2005 in both the St. Louis and St. Charles counties of Missouri. What happened next is exactly what CODIS is designed to have happen. Steffani, now a felon, had to give DNA sample for CODIS and when he did and it was tested it gave a “hit” that he was a match for the rapes of the four young women in Missouri.
The only downfall is CODIS has caused a backlog in Missouri’s state crime lab as in most states, and this backlog prevented law enforcement officials from receiving the news of the match sooner. Law enforcement only learned last summer about the match with Steffani. Once officials learned there were several hits they began to compare notes among themselves and review old cold cases to see what fit and what did not fit and soon the cold cases heated up.
The first assault occurred when a man entered a home through an unlocked sliding glass door, and assaulted a17-year old in her bedroom, after pulling a pillow case over her head. The next night he entered another suburban home using a garage door opener from a car in a driveway. This time he assaulted a 12-year old, after pulling her shirt over her head. This was November 1996.
Then nothing, until April of 1998, when a 12-year old girl is assaulted while at a sleep over with two other girls. The rapist left all 3 girls with a “message from God”. He told the girls to go to church on Sunday and not to have sex until the girls were married. The last known attack occurred in June of 1998. Once more the man entered the girl’s home with a garage door opener he grabbed from a car in the driveway.
The prosecuting attorney’s office talked to all four survivors recently. How incredible to be able to tell these women that the monster who terrorized them has been identified and is in prison, thanks to the modern wonders of DNA. Now a decade later, the women could finally place a name and face to a childhood monster that crept out of the darkness so quietly a decade ago, Charles Joseph Steffani. A Grand Jury charged Steffani with 17 felonies. Those include multiple counts of forcible sodomy, sexual abuse, and one count of statutory sodomy and forcible rape for each woman.
There was a time unless a survivor could positively identify her attacker, there was no case. DNA technology can identify a rapist years, even decades later. Yes, technology is amazing. Yet, DNA is only as good as the person who collects and preserves the evidence. A crime scene once contaminated loses any DNA that is present.
Recently DNA from stamps attached to an envelope several decades old held clues to the identity of a serial killer who had mailed letters about the crimes he or she committed to a newspaper years earlier. A crime once considered unsolvable, before DNA was even considered as a tool in crime fighting; now one day may be able to identify a serial killer who has tormented a country. Currently any DNA evidence properly collected and preserved increases the chances of the case one day having a resolution, even if several more years down the line. DNA is just the beginning of what is to come in forensics, crime fighting and helping survivors bring closure.
DNA and CODIS Solve Decade Old Crime
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is the body’s unique biological code which contains the genetic design of each living organism. Each living organism contains an individual DNA profile. DNA stores information about the individual organism. Since a person’s DNA is individualized specifically to that person it can be an identifier in forensic science or cases or paternity. Lately DNA is becoming a household word often heard on the news regarding the arrest, conviction, or release of a person involved in a crime.
Back in the early 50’s James D. Watson and Francis H.C. Crick, were the first biochemists to propose a model for the structure of DNA. Their work in the structure and identification of DNA has opened up a whole new world for science and a Nobel Prize for both men in 1962. In the present their work brings to the forefront of crime a way to identify parents of children and criminals.
Identical twins form when one fertilized egg divides into halves. Identical twins are the only people who have the same DNA. Fraternal twins form when two eggs, fertilized by two different sperm. Fraternal twins have their own individual DNA. The DNA of a fraternal twin is no closer to matching the DNA of the other fraternal twin than any other sibling DNA would match as most siblings and fraternal twins share about 50% of their genes.
Although identical twins have the same DNA genotype, or internal cell DNA, their DNA has different phenotypes or external ways the DNA shows up. In other words, identical twins have individual fingerprints. So, if a serial rapist has an identical twin, law enforcement must find more evidence to use for conviction. A simple fingerprint however can and will distinguish identical twins.
Federal Law requires all convicted felons provide DNA to the Nation’s Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). CODIS essentially takes the best of forensic science and computer technology to compare DNA samples of unsolved violent crimes nationwide. If the DNA evidence collected from a crime scene or crime victim was entered into CODIS, and later a felon’s DNA is entered and it matches law enforcement is notified.
This same simple DNA sample for CODIS is exactly what led to the arrest of a serial rapist in a crime over a decade old in Missouri. The sexual assaults happened from 1996 through 1998. As far as law enforcement knows four girls were assaulted. All the girls were assaulted in their or a home of a friend, while parents or adults slept in rooms other bedrooms of the homes. The girls were age 11 to 17 at the time they were raped.
Charles Joseph Steffani was 54, when he received his sentence of 20 years in prison. This sentence given for sexual assaults committed in June 2005 in both the St. Louis and St. Charles counties of Missouri. What happened next is exactly what CODIS is designed to have happen. Steffani, now a felon, had to give DNA sample for CODIS and when he did and it was tested it gave a “hit” that he was a match for the rapes of the four young women in Missouri.
The only downfall is CODIS has caused a backlog in Missouri’s state crime lab as in most states, and this backlog prevented law enforcement officials from receiving the news of the match sooner. Law enforcement only learned last summer about the match with Steffani. Once officials learned there were several hits they began to compare notes among themselves and review old cold cases to see what fit and what did not fit and soon the cold cases heated up.
The first assault occurred when a man entered a home through an unlocked sliding glass door, and assaulted a17-year old in her bedroom, after pulling a pillow case over her head. The next night he entered another suburban home using a garage door opener from a car in a driveway. This time he assaulted a 12-year old, after pulling her shirt over her head. This was November 1996.
Then nothing, until April of 1998, when a 12-year old girl is assaulted while at a sleep over with two other girls. The rapist left all 3 girls with a “message from God”. He told the girls to go to church on Sunday and not to have sex until the girls were married. The last known attack occurred in June of 1998. Once more the man entered the girl’s home with a garage door opener he grabbed from a car in the driveway.
The prosecuting attorney’s office talked to all four survivors recently. How incredible to be able to tell these women that the monster who terrorized them has been identified and is in prison, thanks to the modern wonders of DNA. Now a decade later, the women could finally place a name and face to a childhood monster that crept out of the darkness so quietly a decade ago, Charles Joseph Steffani. A Grand Jury charged Steffani with 17 felonies. Those include multiple counts of forcible sodomy, sexual abuse, and one count of statutory sodomy and forcible rape for each woman.
There was a time unless a survivor could positively identify her attacker, there was no case. DNA technology can identify a rapist years, even decades later. Yes, technology is amazing. Yet, DNA is only as good as the person who collects and preserves the evidence. A crime scene once contaminated loses any DNA that is present.
Recently DNA from stamps attached to an envelope several decades old held clues to the identity of a serial killer who had mailed letters about the crimes he or she committed to a newspaper years earlier. A crime once considered unsolvable, before DNA was even considered as a tool in crime fighting; now one day may be able to identify a serial killer who has tormented a country. Currently any DNA evidence properly collected and preserved increases the chances of the case one day having a resolution, even if several more years down the line. DNA is just the beginning of what is to come in forensics, crime fighting and helping survivors bring closure.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
where_is_my_child Madeleine McCann
where_is_my_child
Portuguese police have started investigating an area just nine miles from where Madeleine McCann was abducted after a tip off from a Dutch source
Portuguese police have started investigating an area just nine miles from where Madeleine McCann was abducted after a tip off from a Dutch source
Monday, June 11, 2007
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A Cry for Help
