12x16 - Freedom Fighter
Posted: 01/19/24 07:51
Narrator: first, he
Threatened m*rder.
Then there was a m*rder.
Whoever had done it, had been
Almost a maniac.
Called me charles manson in
Big, three-inch letters,
Front page.
Narrator: he was convicted
And put away for life, but he
Always claimed his innocence and
Was determined to prove it.
He literally solved his own
m*rder case from prison.
He convinced them that, "wait
A minute.
A minute. We have an innocent man here."
We have an innocent man here."
Narrator: on the night of may
, , A fire broke out in a
Rural farmhouse in upstate
New york.
[ Siren wailing ]
By the time firemen got there,
It was entirely engulfed in
Flames.
They realized that the
Occupant, sabina kulakowski, was
Missing, daylight was coming,
And then the firemen and others
Were, basically, looking for
Her.
Narrator: emergency workers
Found sabina kulakowski's body
About yards from the house
On an overgrown footpath.
She was naked.
She had been brutally m*rder*d,
Stabbed, beaten, burned, bitten.
Narrator: sabina was
Years old.
Became pretty obvious right
Away that whoever had done it is
Somebody that, well, quite
Honestly, had to have been
Almost a maniac.
Narrator: the evidence showed
That she was inthe house when
The fire started.
At some point, sabina was
Alive in or about the structure
When it was burning, because she
Did have some soot in her lungs.
Narrator: between the
Farmhouse and sabina's body,
Police found a red t-shirt
Stained with sabina's blood.
Fire investigators found traces
Of accelerant inside the house
And quickly ruled the blaze an
Arson.
Investigators thought the crime
Was one of passion.
Rage.
Pure rage, perhaps motivated by
A desire to get revenge.
Narrator: sabina kulakowski
Lived in the farmhouse alone.
Her boyfriend, ron bench, lived
There with her until they broke
Up a few months before the fire.
By all accounts, it was an
Amicable breakup, and they
Remained friends.
They continued to associate with
One another, but they had ended
Their boyfriend/girlfriend
Relationship.
Narrator: ron bench had an
Alibi for the night of the
Fire -- he was in auburn,
New york, an hour's drive away,
And friends corroborated his
Alibi.
And police had another suspect.
Sabina was a social worker for
The state of new york.
Her superiors were dealing with
A disgruntled man who threatened
To k*ll everyone in the office
Unless he was given custody of
His daughter.
He was angry with the
Child-protective agency because
They had placed his daughter in
Foster care, and he did not like
Foster care, and he did not like that.
That.
Narrator: roy brown spent
Six months in jail for making
Those threats and was released
Just six days before sabina's
m*rder.
His alibi was that he was
With his girlfriend the entire
Night.
And he gave a name.
He gave a location where they
Were.
And they checked on it and found
Out that his girlfriend actually
Was in jail that night.
So he obviously was lying to
Them about his whereabouts.
Narrator: brown denied any
Involvement, but he was arrested
For arson and m*rder.
Called me up the day before
And said, "we're gonna come over
And arrest you."
I said, "come on."
[ Laughs ]
"Are you guys serious?"
And, yeah, they came over and
Arrested me, all right.
": In the morning?
Sure, come pick me up for a
m*rder charge."
Then I had to sit on the porch
'Cause they were minutes
Late.
Narrator: roy brown was the
Prime suspect in the m*rder of
Sabina kulakowski.
He earned that distinction by
Threatening to k*ll everyone in
Sabina's office, due to a
Child-custody dispute.
Roy was not a good guy.
Roy had anger-management issues.
He did have a criminal record.
Nothing of any great
Consequence, but enough so that,
You know, it's not the kind of
Guy that you'd want to really
Hang out with, necessarily.
He was involving himself in some
Bad activities, as far as, you
Know, drinking and whatever
Else.
And he had no real alibi for
Where he was at that point.
Narrator: brown insisted he
Had nothing to do with the arson
Or sabina's m*rder.
But the circumstantial evidence
Was compelling.
Brown was offered a plea
Bargain, but refused.
I told them to go screw
Themselves.
You know, I told the one lawyer,
"You know, I didn't do anything
Wrong."
He said, "it doesn't matter.
They're gonna send you to
Prison, anyway."
Narrator: so roy brown went
On trial.
Prosecutors found two witnesses
Who said brown was physically
Abusive.
Roy brown's wife and a
Girlfriend -- both of them
Stated under oath that he was a
Biter.
They said, when he was angry, he
Would bite them and he used
Biting as a form of trying to
Control them.
Narrator: coincidentally,
Sabina kulakowski was bitten
Before she was k*lled, and
Prosecutors asked a forensic
Odontologist to compare the bite
Marks to brown's teeth.
And roy brown's bite pattern
Matched some of the bite marks
On sabina's body.
Narrator: but the forensic
Odontologist hired by the
Defense claimed the opposite.
He said the bite wounds on
Sabina's body were created by
Someone with six front, upper
Teeth, and brown didn't have
Them.
And he was very clear and
Very adamant in regard to
Excluding roy as the person who
Left those bite marks.
Narrator: the jury sided with
The prosecution and convicted
Roy brown of sabina's m*rder.
He was sentenced to years to
Life in prison.
There was no realevidence
That roy brown knew
Sabina kulakowski, much less
Where she lived.
Narrator: when brown got to
His prison cell, he refused to
Sleep on the bed because he
Said it belonged to a k*ller,
Not him.
I told them that when I went
In there the first night.
"I'll sleep on the floor.
That bed don't belong to me.
That's my desk."
I turned it into an office desk.
And their mattress, I took an
Old belt and an old piece of
String and I made a chair out of
It and sat it down.
"That's my law school."
Narrator: brown filed several
Appeals, and all were denied,
Yet, he continued to work to
Clear his name.
You can't get into the law
Library unless you bribe
Somebody or pay somebody, 'cause
The first thing they're gonna do
Is beat the hell out of you for
Being there, just to make sure
That you know who's in charge.
Narrator: brown also told his
Lawyer, "I'm learning a lot from
Tv shows like 'forensic files.'"
I've studied law books,
Appeals in other cases,
Forensic science, anything I
Could try to utilize to prove
My innocence.
Narrator: brown petitioned
The court for dna testing of the
Saliva found on sabina's
T-shirt, but this request, too,
Was denied.
I don't know who said the
Wheels of justice turn slowly,
But they are flat.
And I'm fixing to jack 'em up,
Change the tires, and throw a
New spare in the trunk.
It had to be discouraging.
I would think that it would --
Could end up and say, "I've had
Enough."
Narrator: then something
Fortuitous happened.
After spending years in
Prison, a fire broke out in
Brown's parents' home,
Destroying all pages of his
Case file.
And that fire changed the course
Of the investigation.
Narrator: years after his
m*rder conviction, roy brown
Learned that a fire in his
Parents' home destroyed his
Copies of his case file -- all
Pages.
Undeterred, brown wanted to
Replace it, using what little
Money he had.
So he went and paid his
Cents a page that he's entitled
To under law, and through the
State's freedom of information
Law, obtained these statements.
Narrator: brown requested
Duplicate copies of everyone who
Gave statements to police during
The m*rder investigation.
Yeah, there was like $.
I had to send them from jail.
I only made like $ every two
Weeks -- $..
Narrator: the sheriff's
Office sent brown a list of
Everyone the police interviewed,
And that's when brown realized
There were four affidavits in
The file he had never seen
Before.
Roy got the list, looked at
It, and said, "wait a minute.
What are all these statements?
Who are all these people, who
Statements I've never seen
Before?"
Narrator: there were several
Statements from barry bench and
His wife, tammy heisner, who
Were part owners of the
Farmhouse that burned down when
Sabina kulakowski lived there.
Tammy told police that barry
Behaved suspiciously when they
Behaved suspiciously when they got to the fire scene.
Got to the fire scene.
Why are we stopping here?
Look around and see if you
See any evidence.
Like what?
Like, I don't know, just
Look!
Narrator: she claimed he
Wanted to search an area
Yards from the farmhouse.
We had parked down the street
From the farm.
And he had mentioned to me that
Maybe we should go down by the
Car and start back up on
Opposite sides of the road,
Looking for evidence or
Something, you know, just to see
If there was anything amiss or
Whatever.
Narrator: to roy brown, this
Was a critical piece of
Information.
Sabina kulakowski's body was
Discovered in that same area
Around daybreak.
They're still battling the
Blaze, you know?
And he's not even up there
Helping.
You know?
He's walking down the road,
Looking way over here.
If he was so concerned, why
Wouldn't he be looking up there?
Narrator: and barry claimed
He had an alibi for the time the
Fire started.
He said he was drinking in a
Local bar until : in the
Morning.
But a bar patron claimed bench
Left the bar around midnight.
He was unaccounted for, for
About an hour and a half.
My reporting on barry bench
Showed that he had, as I
Understood, quite a temper.
Narrator: barry bench had a
Prior arrest and misdemeanor
Conviction for physically
Assaulting a young girl, who
Later got a restraining order
Against him.
One neighbor that I
Interviewed said that she
Actually worked with him and was
Afraid of him.
He had a problem with women,
According to this woman.
Narrator: so taking matters
Into his own hands, brown wrote
A letter to barry bench,
Accusing him of m*rder.
"Attention, barry bench.
I will easily get a court order
To obtain samples from you for
Dna testing.
After such a [bleep] up thing
You did to k*ll that lady,
Sabina kulakowski, and my false
Imprisonment for over a dozen
Years, I still pray for you.
I pray not only that you confess
To k*lling sabina kulakowski, I
Pray you confess to all your
Sins.
And mark my words, they will
Eventually find out your guilt.
Have a merry christmas, but
Don't count on a happy new
Year."
Narrator: brown hoped that
Bench might reply and lick the
Envelope flap, in effect,
Sending his dna sample.
Instead, bench walked in front
Of an oncoming amtrak train and
k*lled himself.
Well, actually, I was kind of
Ticked off because I figured,
"[Bleep] got away.
How am I gonna go to court and
Get a test on this guy now that
He's dead?"
Narrator: brown needed to
Find another way to get bench's
Dna.
He was so desperate, he
Considered stealing it.
I was trying to have my
Family go to the funeral and
Clip his fingernails and cut his
Hair while he was in the box.
[ Chuckles ]
Figure out a way to get some dna
From him.
When you were where I was at,
Measures become desperate, and
Consequences for getting caught
Don't mean anything when you're
Serving life for something you
Didn't do.
Narrator: for years,
Roy brown sat in prison for
Sabina kulakowski's m*rder.
After failing to get a new
Trial, brown contacted the
Innocence project in new york,
Asking them for help.
The innocence project was
Founded a little over years
Ago to help convicted prisoners
Use what was then a new
Technology -- dna testing -- to
Prove that they were wrongfully
Convicted and innocent of the
Crimes for which they were in
Prison.
Narrator: the innocence
Project accepted brown's case.
While doing some research, the
Innocence project learned that
Before brown's trial,
Prosecutors consulted
Dr. Lowell levine, a well-known
Forensic odontologist, but chose
Not to call him as a witness.
We were, for the first time,
Given documents showing that the
State's own expert,
Dr. Lowell levine, had reached
Some verysignificant
Conclusions that cast enormous
Doubt on roy's guilt before his
Case ever went to trial.
Well, I never finished my
Analysis.
In my notes, in fact, I have one
Note on one of the photographs
That if what I was looking for,
If what I thought was an upper
Was, in fact, an upper, I would
Exclude mr. Brown.
Narrator: so the
Innocence project petitioned the
Court for permission to test the
Victim's red t-shirt found at
The crime scene, thinking it
Might contain saliva.
It's not impossible to find
Dna after a -year case, but it
Makes it a little bit more
Difficult.
Narrator: analyst tim goble
Examined the shirt with an
Alternate light source.
Biological material fluoresces
When hit with this light.
There were a number of
Fluorescent stains on the
T-shirt.
And some of them were near the
Markings that were made by the
Previous examiner.
Narrator: not surprisingly,
The stains were near the bite
Holes -- an indication they were
Left by the person who bit the
Victim, presumably her k*ller.
Goble removed the fabric and
Performed str dna testing, which
Is even more exacting than pcr
Testing.
The result -- the dna profile
From the saliva on the t-shirt
Did not match roy brown.
But whose was it?
Barry bench's daughter,
Katherine eckstadt, offered to
Help out.
His daughter was a very
Courageous young woman, who
Said, "I want the truth.
I want to know if my father
Committed this m*rder and if
Roy brown is innocent."
She actually contacted us after
Our papers were filed in court
Originally and said, "if you
Ever need me, I'll give you a
Dna sample."
Narrator: the dna analysis
Confirmed what roy brown already
Knew -- that the saliva stains
On sabina kulakowski's t-shirt
Had come from barry bench.
The paternity testing showed
That the john doe dna on the
Shirt came from the father of
This young woman,
Katherine eckstadt, who was
Barry bench's daughter.
Narrator: unbelievably, when
This evidence was presented to
The court, the judge refused to
Grant a new trial.
He said he had no proof that
Barry bench was katherine's
Biological father.
You would think you'd be home
The next day.
You wouldn't think people would
Drag this out.
This is what kind of people
I'm dealing with.
Narrator: with pressure
Mounting, the state of new york
Eventually exhumed barry bench's
Body and took a dna sample.
It conclusively matched the
Saliva on sabina kulakowski's
T-shirt, and roy brown was
Finally released from prison
Years to the day he was
Convicted.
[ Soft guitar music plays ]
And I was thinking to myself,
"I got victory.
I proved my innocence.
Without any doubt, I showed I
Didn't do it, and I showed
Somebody else diddo it."
Okay?
They can't take that from me.
You know what I'm saying?
They can't open their mouth
Anymore about anything.
I made it very clear to
Roy brown that I regretted very
Much the situation that he found
Himself in.
Narrator: but the question
Remains -- why did barry bench
m*rder sabina kulakowski?
Barry bench and sabina were
Acquaintances.
Sabina lived with barry's
Brother, ron, until they broke
Up a month before the fire.
According to friends,
Barry bench was in financial
Trouble and may have wanted to
Sell the farmhouse where sabina
Was staying.
No one knows what happened that
Night, but the forensic evidence
Shows barry went to the
Farmhouse to speak with sabina.
What are you doing here?
Narrator: there was an
Argument and things turned
Violent.
No! No!
Narrator: the theory is that
Barry set fire to the farmhouse
And was about to leave when he
Realized that sabina wasn't
Dead.
There was another fight outside.
By this time, he couldn't take
Her body back into the
Farmhouse.
The fire was too advanced, so he
Dragged her body to the footpath
Yards away and left her
There.
Why are we stopping here?
Narrator: this explains why
Barry searched that area later,
After firefighters arrived.
He wanted to make sure she was
Dead.
I have never had a case where
The client solved his own crime
From behind his prison cell,
Using nothing but a pen and
Paper.
He really did all the hard work.
Dna evidence, more often than
Not, convicts people.
But it can also exonerate them.
And now I think what the case of
Roy brown serves as an example
Of the fact that prosecutors and
Police now must be -- must be
More thorough.
They can't just, you know, be
Focused on one individual, and
That's it.
They locked me up, and they
Made me turn a cell into an
Office, a bed into a desk, and a
Mattress into a chair.
And law books -- I used them
Instead of weapons.
I used that pen and that
Typewriter.
I beat the [bleep] with their
Own sticks.
See?
Th-grade education goes a long
Way when you're playing with a
Bunch of corrupt [bleep]
They can't even frameanybody
Right.
That's how stupid them college
Geniuses are.
Threatened m*rder.
Then there was a m*rder.
Whoever had done it, had been
Almost a maniac.
Called me charles manson in
Big, three-inch letters,
Front page.
Narrator: he was convicted
And put away for life, but he
Always claimed his innocence and
Was determined to prove it.
He literally solved his own
m*rder case from prison.
He convinced them that, "wait
A minute.
A minute. We have an innocent man here."
We have an innocent man here."
Narrator: on the night of may
, , A fire broke out in a
Rural farmhouse in upstate
New york.
[ Siren wailing ]
By the time firemen got there,
It was entirely engulfed in
Flames.
They realized that the
Occupant, sabina kulakowski, was
Missing, daylight was coming,
And then the firemen and others
Were, basically, looking for
Her.
Narrator: emergency workers
Found sabina kulakowski's body
About yards from the house
On an overgrown footpath.
She was naked.
She had been brutally m*rder*d,
Stabbed, beaten, burned, bitten.
Narrator: sabina was
Years old.
Became pretty obvious right
Away that whoever had done it is
Somebody that, well, quite
Honestly, had to have been
Almost a maniac.
Narrator: the evidence showed
That she was inthe house when
The fire started.
At some point, sabina was
Alive in or about the structure
When it was burning, because she
Did have some soot in her lungs.
Narrator: between the
Farmhouse and sabina's body,
Police found a red t-shirt
Stained with sabina's blood.
Fire investigators found traces
Of accelerant inside the house
And quickly ruled the blaze an
Arson.
Investigators thought the crime
Was one of passion.
Rage.
Pure rage, perhaps motivated by
A desire to get revenge.
Narrator: sabina kulakowski
Lived in the farmhouse alone.
Her boyfriend, ron bench, lived
There with her until they broke
Up a few months before the fire.
By all accounts, it was an
Amicable breakup, and they
Remained friends.
They continued to associate with
One another, but they had ended
Their boyfriend/girlfriend
Relationship.
Narrator: ron bench had an
Alibi for the night of the
Fire -- he was in auburn,
New york, an hour's drive away,
And friends corroborated his
Alibi.
And police had another suspect.
Sabina was a social worker for
The state of new york.
Her superiors were dealing with
A disgruntled man who threatened
To k*ll everyone in the office
Unless he was given custody of
His daughter.
He was angry with the
Child-protective agency because
They had placed his daughter in
Foster care, and he did not like
Foster care, and he did not like that.
That.
Narrator: roy brown spent
Six months in jail for making
Those threats and was released
Just six days before sabina's
m*rder.
His alibi was that he was
With his girlfriend the entire
Night.
And he gave a name.
He gave a location where they
Were.
And they checked on it and found
Out that his girlfriend actually
Was in jail that night.
So he obviously was lying to
Them about his whereabouts.
Narrator: brown denied any
Involvement, but he was arrested
For arson and m*rder.
Called me up the day before
And said, "we're gonna come over
And arrest you."
I said, "come on."
[ Laughs ]
"Are you guys serious?"
And, yeah, they came over and
Arrested me, all right.
": In the morning?
Sure, come pick me up for a
m*rder charge."
Then I had to sit on the porch
'Cause they were minutes
Late.
Narrator: roy brown was the
Prime suspect in the m*rder of
Sabina kulakowski.
He earned that distinction by
Threatening to k*ll everyone in
Sabina's office, due to a
Child-custody dispute.
Roy was not a good guy.
Roy had anger-management issues.
He did have a criminal record.
Nothing of any great
Consequence, but enough so that,
You know, it's not the kind of
Guy that you'd want to really
Hang out with, necessarily.
He was involving himself in some
Bad activities, as far as, you
Know, drinking and whatever
Else.
And he had no real alibi for
Where he was at that point.
Narrator: brown insisted he
Had nothing to do with the arson
Or sabina's m*rder.
But the circumstantial evidence
Was compelling.
Brown was offered a plea
Bargain, but refused.
I told them to go screw
Themselves.
You know, I told the one lawyer,
"You know, I didn't do anything
Wrong."
He said, "it doesn't matter.
They're gonna send you to
Prison, anyway."
Narrator: so roy brown went
On trial.
Prosecutors found two witnesses
Who said brown was physically
Abusive.
Roy brown's wife and a
Girlfriend -- both of them
Stated under oath that he was a
Biter.
They said, when he was angry, he
Would bite them and he used
Biting as a form of trying to
Control them.
Narrator: coincidentally,
Sabina kulakowski was bitten
Before she was k*lled, and
Prosecutors asked a forensic
Odontologist to compare the bite
Marks to brown's teeth.
And roy brown's bite pattern
Matched some of the bite marks
On sabina's body.
Narrator: but the forensic
Odontologist hired by the
Defense claimed the opposite.
He said the bite wounds on
Sabina's body were created by
Someone with six front, upper
Teeth, and brown didn't have
Them.
And he was very clear and
Very adamant in regard to
Excluding roy as the person who
Left those bite marks.
Narrator: the jury sided with
The prosecution and convicted
Roy brown of sabina's m*rder.
He was sentenced to years to
Life in prison.
There was no realevidence
That roy brown knew
Sabina kulakowski, much less
Where she lived.
Narrator: when brown got to
His prison cell, he refused to
Sleep on the bed because he
Said it belonged to a k*ller,
Not him.
I told them that when I went
In there the first night.
"I'll sleep on the floor.
That bed don't belong to me.
That's my desk."
I turned it into an office desk.
And their mattress, I took an
Old belt and an old piece of
String and I made a chair out of
It and sat it down.
"That's my law school."
Narrator: brown filed several
Appeals, and all were denied,
Yet, he continued to work to
Clear his name.
You can't get into the law
Library unless you bribe
Somebody or pay somebody, 'cause
The first thing they're gonna do
Is beat the hell out of you for
Being there, just to make sure
That you know who's in charge.
Narrator: brown also told his
Lawyer, "I'm learning a lot from
Tv shows like 'forensic files.'"
I've studied law books,
Appeals in other cases,
Forensic science, anything I
Could try to utilize to prove
My innocence.
Narrator: brown petitioned
The court for dna testing of the
Saliva found on sabina's
T-shirt, but this request, too,
Was denied.
I don't know who said the
Wheels of justice turn slowly,
But they are flat.
And I'm fixing to jack 'em up,
Change the tires, and throw a
New spare in the trunk.
It had to be discouraging.
I would think that it would --
Could end up and say, "I've had
Enough."
Narrator: then something
Fortuitous happened.
After spending years in
Prison, a fire broke out in
Brown's parents' home,
Destroying all pages of his
Case file.
And that fire changed the course
Of the investigation.
Narrator: years after his
m*rder conviction, roy brown
Learned that a fire in his
Parents' home destroyed his
Copies of his case file -- all
Pages.
Undeterred, brown wanted to
Replace it, using what little
Money he had.
So he went and paid his
Cents a page that he's entitled
To under law, and through the
State's freedom of information
Law, obtained these statements.
Narrator: brown requested
Duplicate copies of everyone who
Gave statements to police during
The m*rder investigation.
Yeah, there was like $.
I had to send them from jail.
I only made like $ every two
Weeks -- $..
Narrator: the sheriff's
Office sent brown a list of
Everyone the police interviewed,
And that's when brown realized
There were four affidavits in
The file he had never seen
Before.
Roy got the list, looked at
It, and said, "wait a minute.
What are all these statements?
Who are all these people, who
Statements I've never seen
Before?"
Narrator: there were several
Statements from barry bench and
His wife, tammy heisner, who
Were part owners of the
Farmhouse that burned down when
Sabina kulakowski lived there.
Tammy told police that barry
Behaved suspiciously when they
Behaved suspiciously when they got to the fire scene.
Got to the fire scene.
Why are we stopping here?
Look around and see if you
See any evidence.
Like what?
Like, I don't know, just
Look!
Narrator: she claimed he
Wanted to search an area
Yards from the farmhouse.
We had parked down the street
From the farm.
And he had mentioned to me that
Maybe we should go down by the
Car and start back up on
Opposite sides of the road,
Looking for evidence or
Something, you know, just to see
If there was anything amiss or
Whatever.
Narrator: to roy brown, this
Was a critical piece of
Information.
Sabina kulakowski's body was
Discovered in that same area
Around daybreak.
They're still battling the
Blaze, you know?
And he's not even up there
Helping.
You know?
He's walking down the road,
Looking way over here.
If he was so concerned, why
Wouldn't he be looking up there?
Narrator: and barry claimed
He had an alibi for the time the
Fire started.
He said he was drinking in a
Local bar until : in the
Morning.
But a bar patron claimed bench
Left the bar around midnight.
He was unaccounted for, for
About an hour and a half.
My reporting on barry bench
Showed that he had, as I
Understood, quite a temper.
Narrator: barry bench had a
Prior arrest and misdemeanor
Conviction for physically
Assaulting a young girl, who
Later got a restraining order
Against him.
One neighbor that I
Interviewed said that she
Actually worked with him and was
Afraid of him.
He had a problem with women,
According to this woman.
Narrator: so taking matters
Into his own hands, brown wrote
A letter to barry bench,
Accusing him of m*rder.
"Attention, barry bench.
I will easily get a court order
To obtain samples from you for
Dna testing.
After such a [bleep] up thing
You did to k*ll that lady,
Sabina kulakowski, and my false
Imprisonment for over a dozen
Years, I still pray for you.
I pray not only that you confess
To k*lling sabina kulakowski, I
Pray you confess to all your
Sins.
And mark my words, they will
Eventually find out your guilt.
Have a merry christmas, but
Don't count on a happy new
Year."
Narrator: brown hoped that
Bench might reply and lick the
Envelope flap, in effect,
Sending his dna sample.
Instead, bench walked in front
Of an oncoming amtrak train and
k*lled himself.
Well, actually, I was kind of
Ticked off because I figured,
"[Bleep] got away.
How am I gonna go to court and
Get a test on this guy now that
He's dead?"
Narrator: brown needed to
Find another way to get bench's
Dna.
He was so desperate, he
Considered stealing it.
I was trying to have my
Family go to the funeral and
Clip his fingernails and cut his
Hair while he was in the box.
[ Chuckles ]
Figure out a way to get some dna
From him.
When you were where I was at,
Measures become desperate, and
Consequences for getting caught
Don't mean anything when you're
Serving life for something you
Didn't do.
Narrator: for years,
Roy brown sat in prison for
Sabina kulakowski's m*rder.
After failing to get a new
Trial, brown contacted the
Innocence project in new york,
Asking them for help.
The innocence project was
Founded a little over years
Ago to help convicted prisoners
Use what was then a new
Technology -- dna testing -- to
Prove that they were wrongfully
Convicted and innocent of the
Crimes for which they were in
Prison.
Narrator: the innocence
Project accepted brown's case.
While doing some research, the
Innocence project learned that
Before brown's trial,
Prosecutors consulted
Dr. Lowell levine, a well-known
Forensic odontologist, but chose
Not to call him as a witness.
We were, for the first time,
Given documents showing that the
State's own expert,
Dr. Lowell levine, had reached
Some verysignificant
Conclusions that cast enormous
Doubt on roy's guilt before his
Case ever went to trial.
Well, I never finished my
Analysis.
In my notes, in fact, I have one
Note on one of the photographs
That if what I was looking for,
If what I thought was an upper
Was, in fact, an upper, I would
Exclude mr. Brown.
Narrator: so the
Innocence project petitioned the
Court for permission to test the
Victim's red t-shirt found at
The crime scene, thinking it
Might contain saliva.
It's not impossible to find
Dna after a -year case, but it
Makes it a little bit more
Difficult.
Narrator: analyst tim goble
Examined the shirt with an
Alternate light source.
Biological material fluoresces
When hit with this light.
There were a number of
Fluorescent stains on the
T-shirt.
And some of them were near the
Markings that were made by the
Previous examiner.
Narrator: not surprisingly,
The stains were near the bite
Holes -- an indication they were
Left by the person who bit the
Victim, presumably her k*ller.
Goble removed the fabric and
Performed str dna testing, which
Is even more exacting than pcr
Testing.
The result -- the dna profile
From the saliva on the t-shirt
Did not match roy brown.
But whose was it?
Barry bench's daughter,
Katherine eckstadt, offered to
Help out.
His daughter was a very
Courageous young woman, who
Said, "I want the truth.
I want to know if my father
Committed this m*rder and if
Roy brown is innocent."
She actually contacted us after
Our papers were filed in court
Originally and said, "if you
Ever need me, I'll give you a
Dna sample."
Narrator: the dna analysis
Confirmed what roy brown already
Knew -- that the saliva stains
On sabina kulakowski's t-shirt
Had come from barry bench.
The paternity testing showed
That the john doe dna on the
Shirt came from the father of
This young woman,
Katherine eckstadt, who was
Barry bench's daughter.
Narrator: unbelievably, when
This evidence was presented to
The court, the judge refused to
Grant a new trial.
He said he had no proof that
Barry bench was katherine's
Biological father.
You would think you'd be home
The next day.
You wouldn't think people would
Drag this out.
This is what kind of people
I'm dealing with.
Narrator: with pressure
Mounting, the state of new york
Eventually exhumed barry bench's
Body and took a dna sample.
It conclusively matched the
Saliva on sabina kulakowski's
T-shirt, and roy brown was
Finally released from prison
Years to the day he was
Convicted.
[ Soft guitar music plays ]
And I was thinking to myself,
"I got victory.
I proved my innocence.
Without any doubt, I showed I
Didn't do it, and I showed
Somebody else diddo it."
Okay?
They can't take that from me.
You know what I'm saying?
They can't open their mouth
Anymore about anything.
I made it very clear to
Roy brown that I regretted very
Much the situation that he found
Himself in.
Narrator: but the question
Remains -- why did barry bench
m*rder sabina kulakowski?
Barry bench and sabina were
Acquaintances.
Sabina lived with barry's
Brother, ron, until they broke
Up a month before the fire.
According to friends,
Barry bench was in financial
Trouble and may have wanted to
Sell the farmhouse where sabina
Was staying.
No one knows what happened that
Night, but the forensic evidence
Shows barry went to the
Farmhouse to speak with sabina.
What are you doing here?
Narrator: there was an
Argument and things turned
Violent.
No! No!
Narrator: the theory is that
Barry set fire to the farmhouse
And was about to leave when he
Realized that sabina wasn't
Dead.
There was another fight outside.
By this time, he couldn't take
Her body back into the
Farmhouse.
The fire was too advanced, so he
Dragged her body to the footpath
Yards away and left her
There.
Why are we stopping here?
Narrator: this explains why
Barry searched that area later,
After firefighters arrived.
He wanted to make sure she was
Dead.
I have never had a case where
The client solved his own crime
From behind his prison cell,
Using nothing but a pen and
Paper.
He really did all the hard work.
Dna evidence, more often than
Not, convicts people.
But it can also exonerate them.
And now I think what the case of
Roy brown serves as an example
Of the fact that prosecutors and
Police now must be -- must be
More thorough.
They can't just, you know, be
Focused on one individual, and
That's it.
They locked me up, and they
Made me turn a cell into an
Office, a bed into a desk, and a
Mattress into a chair.
And law books -- I used them
Instead of weapons.
I used that pen and that
Typewriter.
I beat the [bleep] with their
Own sticks.
See?
Th-grade education goes a long
Way when you're playing with a
Bunch of corrupt [bleep]
They can't even frameanybody
Right.
That's how stupid them college
Geniuses are.