The episode discusses the possibility that he may be innocent.
In 1983, Doug and Peggy Ryen, their 10 year old daughter Jessica, and an 11 year old neighbor, Chris Hughes, were brutally killed. The sole survivor, 8 year old Josh Ryen, told police that three men had committed the attack, which involved a combined 140 slashing and stabbings with an ice pick, a hatchet and at least one knife. Multiple witnesses saw three white men driving a car that fit the description of the Ryens’ car (which had been stolen from their home) near the crime scene. White men in bloody clothes who were acting strangely showed up at a bar on the night of the murders. Finally, when the Ryens’ vehicle was located, it had blood on the driver’s seat, front passenger seat, and rear passenger seat.
Despite this, police arrested Kevin Cooper, a 155 pound Black man who had recently escaped from prison, where he had been incarcerated for robbery. He had been hiding in an empty house near the Ryens’ home. An initial search of the home where he was hiding turned up no evidence, but after they identified him as a suspect, the sheath of a hatchet and a bloody prison uniform button were located in a room that the police stated that they did not previously search. Later, the hatchet itself was found in the opposite direction from the home where Cooper had been hiding, and it was discovered that the button was a different color than those used on the prison uniform that Cooper had been wearing.
Nevertheless, Cooper was tried and convicted for the grisly quadruple homicide — and sentenced to death. In a May 2018 New York Times column — the longest ever run by the paper, Nicholas Kristof argued that Cooper is innocent, stating that the case is a “failure at every level.” Kristof is joined in this request by the American Bar Association, Senator Kamala Harris, a former FBI agent, and Judge William A. Fletcher of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Judge Fletcher wrote a 100 page opinion where he stated that Cooper was framed by the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. Recently, Kristof joined the Executive Director of the Death Penalty Information Center for its Discussions with DPIC podcast for an in-depth discussion of the Kevin Cooper case.
Like all Americans, Californians have strong opinions on the death penalty. Whether you personally support or oppose capital punishment, we can all agree that it should never be used in cases where there is any doubt about a person’s guilt. As a San Bernardino murder defense attorney, it is my job to aggressively defend my clients against criminal charges, and hold the government to its burden of proof. I work with my clients to put together the best possible factual and legal defenses to each case, after thoroughly investigating all facts and examining the case from every angle. In the present case, where there only evidence linking Kevin Cooper to the crime may have been planted, DNA testing of this evidence would certainly clear up any uncertainty as to whether he was truly the perpetrator of the crime.
At the Chambers Law Firm, we zealously defend our clients against all California criminal charges. Contact our firm today at 714-760-4088 or dchambers@clfca.com to schedule a free initial consultation with a San Bernardino murder defense attorney.
