Required Viewing
The Unjust Prosecution of Lisl Auman
Conviction Overturned
In March 2005 the Colorado Supreme Court by a margin of four to one overturned Lisl Auman’s burglary conviction, thus negating the felony murder conviction. The conviction was thrown out because a key component of the burglary instructions, “the intent to commit theft,” was omitted from the jury instructions provided by the trial court. Because the Court’s ruling noted lack of evidence that Lisl Auman intended to commit theft, it was determined that this was not harmless error and, therefore, compelled reversal of her conviction.
The Court’s ruling casts serious doubt on prosecutor’s claims of Lisl Auman’s actions that day.
Lisl was simply going to retrieve her own belongings from her own place of residence when others who were helping her move, knowingly or not, took items that did not belong to Lisl. The prosecutors stretched this to say that Lisl Auman masterminded a calculated burglary to extract revenge on her boyfriend.
Many people have had many opinions and said many things about the case of Lisl Auman, but perhaps the most gripping summary came from Dr. Hunter S. Thompson when he said,
“In all my experience with Courts & Crimes & downright Evil behavior by the Law & the Sometimes criminal cops who enforce it, this is the Worst & most Reprehensible miscarriage of "Justice" I've ever encountered.”
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They Said
It is only natural that citizens would like to hear what prosecutors have had to say about the case. Here is just a sampling of what they argued in order to convict Lisl?
They said, “Lisl refused to cooperate,” despite undeniable statements made by the arresting officer. Here is a portion of his affidavit provided the day of the shooting.
Sgt, Michael Gargaro: I asked her the immediate questions such as, you know, "Does he have any weapons?" This is before the gunfire began. I asked her if he had any weapons.
And uh, she said, "He has a gun," and I said, "What kind of gun?" And we already knew he did because he had been firing at Jefferson County Sheriffs, uh, during the car chase part.
And uh, I said," Like this, what I have?" and she said, "No, it's big, like a rifle."
And I asked her if he had any extra ammunition or anything like that and she said, "I don't know, he's wearing a black leather jacket."
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They said, “At that moment in time, there's one person and one person only that can save Bruce VanderJagt's life, and that's her,” and Deputy District Attorney Timothy Twining continues “she doesn't even say it's a dead end, doesn't even say that much. "The defendant could have prevented Bruce VanderJagt's death. Instead, you (pointing at Lisl) helped cause it."
The facts, however, debunk that accusation. Sgt. Michael Gargaro, the arresting officer who had the handcuffed and confined Auman in his custody in his patrol car before, during, and after the shootout at the condo had provided off-duty security to the condominium complex for seven years prior to that day. Sgt. Gargaro knew the detail of the building's layout, and even stated, "It has only one entryway to the four units...."
The next obvious question is, did Sgt. Gargaro tell his fellow police officers also on the scene that the entryway was a dead end? There is no evidence to suggest he did.
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But perhaps the most shocking claim is uttered by Chief Prosecutor Henry Cooper. He said, "She could have grabbed the gun, and shot Jaehnig." According to Cooper, that's all she would have had to do to prove herself innocent of felony murder.