Monday, August 10, 2015

Is Prim reviewing old major-crimes cases?

Bill Prim was elected Sheriff of McHenry County in 2014 and took office on December 1.

Is he reviewing any old cases? For example, the triple homicide near Marengo on June 7, 2011? An elderly couple, Jack and Audrey Feldkamp, died. Doran Bloom died.

Sheriff Nygren didn't bother to conduct any type of thorough investigation and less than 24 hours later declared "Case closed". A fourth person was at the house and, after a little chat (less than 30 minutes) in a hospital room the following day, a so-called detective with MCSD had to have reported verbally to Nygren (or maybe only to his own supervisor, who then gave it third-hand to Nygren), and Nygren went before the bright lights at a press conference to say that the kid from down the street did it and deserved to die. Nygren barred the door to Cal Skinner, Pete Gonigam and me. We might have asked some hard questions, even then.

Oh, really? MCSD officers trampled all over the crime scene. The crime-scene log shows about 50 entries. A detective supervisor entered the residence and then left. When she re-entered, she correctly donned that little booties that are to prevent contamination of a crime scene. Too late!!! Nygren and Zinke were there for 15 minutes. Only 15 minutes... So much for taking charge!

No evidence was ever sent to a crime lab. MCSD did not make any effort to match blood samples from the floors, walls or clothing. They never even accounted for all the bullets. They found four more spent casings than they found bullets.

The Coroner in Winnebago County did a crappy job and did not conduct a fully-open coroner's jury, as required by State law. She had a hand-picked group of favorite jury members, and they met in private for two hours to examine and discuss two of the three deaths. Audrey Feldkamp died in the hospital in Rockford before midnight, and the previous McHenry County Coroner decided, in violation of Illinois law, to conduct Doran Bloom's inquest in Rockford "for convenience". I was there with Doran Bloom's parents and a Northwest Herald reporter.

When the Coroner escorted the four of us from the waiting room, she said that the jury had been meeting since 7:00AM. I immediately asked "Why?" and she said she always did it that way. The wrong way!

MCSD should have called in MIAT but didn't. I mean, why would they want anyone snooping around after three people died? Would 4-5 pairs of officers from police departments in the County raise a squawk about not collecting blood samples and keeping nosing spectators (deputies with morbid curiosity but no official duty inside the residence) out of the crime scene?

Sheriff Prim should launch a thorough investigation to put to rest ongoing rumors that it did not happen the way that Keith Nygren swallowed the story.

What will it take to get him to do that?

2 comments:

CB said...

A couple corrections:
Nygren NEVER conducted an investigation.
Nygren was never at the crime scene.
His "log in" at the crime scene was forged and Nygren admitted that he was never there later before a judge in a hearing with Scott Milliman.
Kieth had to fly up from his posh home in Florida the next day to do the television interview. Then he flew back to Florida. He didn't want to be bothered with having to do an investigation.

Gus said...

I had heard that Nygren was not at the scene. Sure would like to put the keeper of the crime-scene log under oath and ask him how Nygren's name got on the log.