Governor Denies Brendan Dassey Pardon Request

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers says he will not consider a pardon request from Brendan Dassey, the man convicted of rape and murder when he was a teenager whose story was documented in the 2015 Netflix series “Making a Murderer.”

A letter released Friday says Dassey’s request filed in October does not meet the criteria for a pardon consideration because he has not completed his prison sentence, and he is required to register as a sex offender.

Advocates have been pushing for Dassey, now 30, to be freed but ran out of options in the courts after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear his latest appeal.

Dassey’s attorney’s, Laura Nirider and Steven Drizin, issued a statement Friday afternoon. They said the Wisconsin Pardon Advisory Board rejected Dassey’s clemency petition in an “unsigned form letter, without reviewing the petition on the merits.”

Dassey has been in prison for 13 years. He confessed to the 2005 rape and murder of photographer Teresa Halbach in northeastern Wisconsin. Dassey’s uncle, Steven Avery, was also convicted in the killing.

Dassey’s attorneys argue that police manipulated Dassey into making a false confession.

“Although the Pardon Advisory Board has stated that it will not consider commutations, Gov. Evers is not bound by those rules,” Nirider and Drizin said in their statement. “He does have the power to issue commutations under the Wisconsin Constitution and should do so when, as here, courts fail to deliver justice. Our partners around the country stand ready to work with the Governor to develop an appropriate process for the review of commutation petitions.”

Dassey’s attorneys said they will continue to work respectfully but relentlessly for their client.