Broderick investigation delayed further
Weld DA: More witnesses needed before a prosecutorial decision is made
Staff Reports
10:38 a.m. MT May 2, 2008
An investigation into whether a Fort Collins police officer withheld information that led to Timothy Masters' murder conviction will be further delayed after prosecutors decided they needed to interview more witnesses.
The Weld County District Attorney's Office is investigating whether Lt. Jim Broderick, who was the lead detective on the murder case of Peggy Hettrick, intentionally withheld evidence that could have helped Masters' defense team prove his innocence.
District Attorney Ken Buck's office is investigating allegations of perjury, wiretapping and misconduct related to withholding information.
Broderick built the case that resulted in Masters being arrested and tried in 1999. Masters was 15 at the time Hettrick was killed and always maintained his innocence. No physical evidence connected Masters to Hettrick’s murder, but a forensic psychologist contacted by Broderick testified that Masters’ boyhood doodles were evidence of a “fantasy rehearsal” for the murder. He was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison.
But Masters was released on Jan. 22, his conviction and life sentence overturned, after defense lawyers David Wymore and Maria Liu argued that Broderick hid and manipulated evidence that could have acquitted Masters, and lied on the stand during the trial.
Special prosecutors assigned to defend the handling of Masters’ prosecution agreed in a court motion that four bodies of evidence were wrongfully withheld from Masters’ original defense attorneys. In subsequent court papers, they laid the responsibility for these violations on Broderick, but didn’t agree that Masters was unfairly tried until DNA evidence from the victim’s clothing pointed to another suspect.
Since then, the Larimer County District Attorney’s Office dropped the charges against Masters.
Weld investigators have interviewed 28 witnesses so far in the case to determine whether Broderick should face criminal charges related to those allegations. One key witness has not yet been interviewed because the witness' attorney is in the midst of a federal death penalty case, and has been unavailable for several weeks.
"We feel that in order to fulfill our duty of conducting a thorough investigation into this case, this individual must be interviewed, and other leads must be pursued, prior to concluding the investigation," DA's spokeswoman Jennifer Finch said in a statement.
Additional interviews, as well as follow-up on some new leads, also need to be completed, Finch said.
Stay with www.fortcollinsnow.com for additional updates.
