# How the cops tried to frame my best friend for murder. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 13, 2009, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160 "2009-01-13T22:18:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/41 "2009-01-13T22:55:47Z")
> [@Stan\_Shmenge](#): > > It was an attempt to put a man in jail for a murder that they knew damn well he didn’t commit. Perhaps my English is poor, but that is a frame-up in my book. Your book must be called “how to be a dumbass on the internet for dummys”. Trying to find the guilty party is not framing, the fact that in something over 95% of cases Gary would have very likely been the murderer is the reason why they went after him. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/42 "2009-01-13T22:59:16Z")
Stan (or is it [Ron](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=495672)?), you’re leaving out an important bit of info… Are you a LEO or related to one by chance? ---
**Author:** ![Amp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Amp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amp)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/43 "2009-01-13T23:00:15Z")
I still think Danny did it for the insurance money. ---
**Author:** ![Stan\_Shmenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@Stan\_Shmenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stan_Shmenge)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/44 "2009-01-13T23:01:00Z")
> [@jkusters](#): > > My condolences for your loss. However I think you’ve misunderstood a basic principle in your story. I’d say your friend was a suspect, but that’s hardly being “framed.” If he was being framed, he’d have to have been set up by the police in advance. As it was, they suspected foul play, saw your friend as the likeliest suspect and proceeded with an investigation. That’s how policework is done. If you put yourself in the police’s shoes (which I realize is a futile request), you might have seen their reasoning. It all worked out in the end, did it not? No, not quite. When every single hairbrain theory of theirs was shot to pieces, they still tried to extract a confession from Danny, to the point where even he was doubting his own innocence. Imagine if at certain point, a combination of his grief and the persuasion of his interrogators, he might have confessed to a crime he was innocent of. He would be doing life in prison right now, and his daughter would be an absolute orphan. All’s well that end’s well is not exculpatory of the treatment he received at the hands of the Burbank Police. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/45 "2009-01-13T23:01:26Z")
> [@Amp](#): > > I still think Danny did it for the insurance money. Yep… Those gang-bangers are loco. ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/46 "2009-01-13T23:01:31Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > You’d probably have gotten more sympathy if you hadn’t tried to use your personal tragedy to win an internet dick-waving contest. Yeah, this was my thought. The worst people in this thread can be said to have done is not respected the memory of a person they don’t know. The worst **Stan** can be said to have done is to have used the death of his close friend to prove a point to people he thinks are morons. Truly, we are the nasty ones. ---
**Author:** ![kidchameleon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/898d66/32.png) [@kidchameleon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kidchameleon)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/47 "2009-01-13T23:03:15Z")
> [@Stan\_Shmenge](#): > > Just make it a point never to mess up around me, because I WILL make sure that you regret it. Man, you must not be popular in the bowling leagues. ---
**Author:** ![DianaG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@DianaG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DianaG)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/48 "2009-01-13T23:03:40Z")
> [@Revenant\_Threshold](#): > > The worst people in this thread can be said to have done is not respected the memory of a person they don’t know. Does it make a difference if what I’m actually doing is not respecting the idea of a person I strongly suspect never actually existed? ---
**Author:** ![Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bc8723/32.png) [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/49 "2009-01-13T23:04:04Z")
> [@Stan\_Shmenge](#): > > They continued to try and extract a confession after there was exculpatory evidence. I understand that it’s a traumatic situation to be in, both for your friend and for you. However, I have never understood it to be the job of the police to determine which evidence is or is not exculpatory; that’s what we have courts for. The police are there to gather every shred of evidence, including statements by the relatives and friends of the victim, without bias. The district attorney reviews the evidence and decides whether or not to press charges. (I am not a lawyer, so I may have missed some finer points of the law, but this is my general understanding.) It may feel hurtful, but I submit that _we are safer_ as a society when the police _do not make judgments of guilt._ The police should not be saying to themselves, “Gosh, the guy’s friend says he’s innocent. Let’s pack it up and head back to the precinct, boys.” The police should not be saying, “We thought the guy is guilty, but after searching his car for blood, we’ve decided that there’s no reason to investigate further. Case closed.” In all seriousness, do you think the police should be entrusted with the authority to make such on-the-spot judgments? Furthermore, mouthing off at the police probably didn’t help your friend. It could have made him look _even more_ guilty: to a certain kind of suspicious mind, it could look like the killer’s best friend saying, in essence, “that’s not the car he murdered her with.” Put yourself into the shoes of an officer: how would you react to some meddling person accusing _you_ of incompetence? You don’t react to confromtation very well even on a message board. If I had been in that situation, I would have told the police about her previous suicide threats and given the number of that therapist as confirmation. That might have saved your friend some questioning … mouthing off at cops, I’m not sure was helpful. ---
**Author:** ![Stan\_Shmenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@Stan\_Shmenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stan_Shmenge)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/50 "2009-01-13T23:04:32Z")
> [@HelloNinja](#): > > Stan (or is it [Ron](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=495672)?), you’re leaving out an important bit of info… > > Are you a LEO or related to one by chance? Actually, I am related to a LEO, my grandfather was an Irish cop in Long Beach during the Great Depression. He died when I was about four years old, and the only memory I had of him was him playing solitaire while my Gram held court. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/51 "2009-01-13T23:05:26Z")
> [@Stan\_Shmenge](#): > > Imagine if at certain point, a combination of his grief and the persuasion of his interrogators, he might have confessed to a crime he was innocent of. He would be doing life in prison right now, and his daughter would be an absolute orphan. A confession alone is not usually sufficient evidence of guilt. ---
**Author:** ![Revenant\_Threshold](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@Revenant\_Threshold](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revenant_Threshold)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/52 "2009-01-13T23:05:59Z")
> [@DianaG](#): > > Does it make a difference if what I’m actually doing is not respecting the idea of a person I strongly suspect never actually existed? Sure, but i’m doing “worsts”. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/53 "2009-01-13T23:06:08Z")
> [@HelloNinja](#): > > Anyone w/ good Google-Fu find a news story on this yet? I got nuthin. My Google-Fu is weak. ---
**Author:** ![Stan\_Shmenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@Stan\_Shmenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stan_Shmenge)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/54 "2009-01-13T23:07:30Z")
> [@DianaG](#): > > Does it make a difference if what I’m actually doing is not respecting the idea of a person I strongly suspect never actually existed? Her name was Kelly Cortes. She looked a lot like Angelina Jolie. She had a SAG card. She existed. I was a pall bearer at her funeral. Her mother comes and visits Deja all the time. EABOD. ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/55 "2009-01-13T23:07:53Z")
> [@Stan\_Shmenge](#): > > I am not big, I am not strong, I know no martial arts, and I have never even held a firearm. My penis is below average size. So you’re just an [Everyday Normal Guy](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PsnxDQvQpw) … nothin’ special 'bout you, motherfucker! ---
**Author:** ![Stan\_Shmenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@Stan\_Shmenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stan_Shmenge)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/56 "2009-01-13T23:08:31Z")
> [@Q.E.D](#): > > A confession alone is not usually sufficient evidence of guilt. Yes, but if the cops think you did it, however wrong they may be, it will do. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/57 "2009-01-13T23:11:05Z")
> [@Stan\_Shmenge](#): > > Yes, but if the cops think you did it, however wrong they may be, it will do. No, it won’t. Surprisingly, it’s very difficult to get a conviction if all they have is a confession, but no other evidence nor witnesses. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/58 "2009-01-13T23:11:38Z")
Why did Danny flee the area to hide at your studio? And why wouldn’t this make the cops more suspicious of him as a person of interest? It doesn’t seem like the type of behavior one would exhibit if your SO was just killed. Did he have time to go get his car washed before they found him in the morning? ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/59 "2009-01-13T23:14:21Z")
So a young woman is dead and the police question her husband? Even after you, Stan Shmenge, personally assured them that he was a stand-up guy, not to mention your bestest friend in the whole world? And then they had the audacity to _inspect his vehicle_?? If this isn’t a case for Amnesty International, I don’t know what is. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2009, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160/60 "2009-01-13T23:14:43Z")
**Stan** , surely her obituary is online? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-the-cops-tried-to-frame-my-best-friend-for-murder/481160.md?page=4)