I know the victim. She and her family were devastated when he was exonerated by the DNA. She and her husband are two wonderful people and she was wracked with guilt over having him spent 18 years in prison based on her testimony.
After he was charged with murder, she was victimized again because she felt like she may have been partially responsible for creating the monster who is Steven Avery. He was a bad guy before he went to prison for a crime he did not commit, he came out after 18 years even worse.
Nobody who I know from Manitowoc County has any doubts that he committed the murder.
Sad story, looks like. Avery was not bright to begin with, comes from what we think of as white trash. He had a few petty crimes, but nothing that would make one think he could resort to rape or murder.
But then, he had to survive prison for 18 years. That will destroy anyone. Never be the same.
I have seen the documentary.
The victim was interviewed when it came to light that Avery was innocent. The victim seemed sincere when she realized he was innocent and had been charged for a crime he did not commit.
The guilty man (DNA proof) looked very much like Avery.
Avery is mildly handicapped ~ 70 IQ
The documentary portrays law enforcement as out to get the Averys; even deliberately out to get Avery. The facts (actual interviews, etc) shown in this film are convincing.
Interesting series.
There seems to be two major opinions developing from the popularity of this documentary; first that Avery is innocent, or secondly that the prosecution did not prove it's case.
I tend to fall in the latter group. Many of the circumstances point to Avery as the killer, but the manner and scope of the evidence is so suspect that it's very difficult to get a clear picture of what truly happened. I believe that Avery was confronted by the police with so much false information, speculation, and manufactured evidence that he had a good idea that they couldn't prove their case.
The most interesting piece of evidence, that is rarely mentioned in reviews and discussions, is Ms. Halbach's blood found in the back of the SUV. Yet, the prosecution and police pretty much tried to force the story that she was killed in either Avery's trailer or garage, and neither of those scenario's appears to be true.