Trial and Error

Jul 9, 2010

Thanks to all the folks who were prepared to show up at the  Cumberland County Courthouse last Fall for the hearing which, in the end, did not take place. At the last minute the state conceded to our defense team’s position regarding Touch DNA testing of certain articles of evidence (items which the AG’s office did not incinerate) making a hearing before Judge Bradford unnecessary. Afterwards, however, negotiations continued to drag — we had to cancel several tries at getting out a newsletter due to changing positions and dates. We now expect that the testing will take place before too much longer. The date for the hearing regarding test results has been rescheduled several times — the last announced date was September 1 or before, but we would not bet the farm on it!

We are gratified by the release earlier this year of the findings by two of the nation’s leading forensic pathologists, Dr. Cyril Wecht and Dr. Walter Hofman, that the time-of-death evidence excludes Dennis as a suspect in the murder of Sarah Cherry. Whether this important evidence will be considered by the court will rest with Judge Bradford. The two reports may be found at

http://media.kjonline.com/documents/dechaine_tod_op_wecht.pdf and at http://media.kjonline.com/documents/dechaine_tod_op_hofman.pdf.

Last December several of our members met with the editorial board of the Portland Press Herald, which included Mr. Richard Connor, the new publisher and owner of the Press Herald, the Maine Sunday Telegram, the Kennebec Journal, and the Morning Sentinel. Our people were received very politely, and were listened to, and the meeting lasted well beyond its scheduled end. Sometime later reporter Trevor Maxwell was assigned to thoroughly investigate the case.

Needless to say, this is what we have been urging journalists to do for as long as we have been fighting for justice for Dennis, and we are gratified by Mr. Connor’s interest in Dennis’s case. It is very encouraging to know that there still are journalists who are interested in digging into a story — we had all but given up hope. We expect that this coverage will be very important for Dennis’s

cause. The first installment will be published in the MST, the KJ, and the MS on Sunday, July 4. The second part will be published one week later, on July 11. We expect that the first installment will be a review of the crime and following events, and that the second will get into the evidence indicating Dennis’s wrongful conviction.

Early in June T & E had a table on the floor of the hall during the Democratic state convention, and distributed information to many interested delegates. We were disappointed in not being able to attend the Republican state convention, as we have in the past, but in order to participate we would have had to sign a pledge which no tax-exempt advocacy group could properly do.

We are very pleased to be able to tell you that Dennis is doing well. He has taken on a rigorous exercise program, and every day does 200 push-ups, 200 sit-ups, and walks in small circles for 2 hours. He has lost weight and now looks to be about 35. He is an amazing man.

To preview the PPH article this coming weekend and next weekend go to http://www.pressherald.com/holding/dennis_dechaine_maine_sarah_cherry_murder_case.html?searchterm=Dechaine

Please forward our newsletter to everyone in your address book.

Your letters to the press expressing your concerns and requesting that Dennis gets a fair trial are urgently needed — the editors,

the politicians,  and also representatives of the national and international media will be looking to see what the public reaction to

these stories will be. We can expect that people who are opposed to Dennis receiving a new trial will be responding in force, particularly on

the Maine Today online website which allows anonymous postings, no matter how inaccurate or vicious. We must respond to these

folks by calmly and clearly presenting the facts of the case.

Addresses for submitting letters to the editor to the KJ and the MST (at the Press Herald) are below:

http://www.kjonline.com/readerservices/Send_a_Letter_to_the_Editor-KJ.html and http://www.letterstotheeditoratpressherald.com

WE URGE YOU TO WRITE!  THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU CAN DO NOW FOR DENNIS.

Sincere Thanks

Carol Waltman   

Bill Bunting   

Bernie Huebner    

Steve Sandau   

Don Dechaine