John Ferak

USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin

NEWTON - From the start, the criminal investigation into the 1999 hit-and-run death of teenager Ricky Hochstetler was seriously flawed.

From insufficient follow-up to the discovery of vehicle parts found near the pedestrian's killing, to the failure to seek assistance from the Wisconsin Department of Justice or the Wisconsin State Patrol, to using faulty evidence-collection procedures, the missteps may have prevented the boy’s killer from being brought to justice, a review by USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin found.

Shortly after Hochstetler, 17, was struck while walking home on the side of a county road, residents in rural Manitowoc County began finding broken vehicle parts in the snow.

On the morning of the fatality, Robert Jeffery of Newton found parts scattered in the snow at the seldom-used intersection of Center and Newton roads in rural Newton. If the fleeing driver had turned onto Center Road, the village of Cleveland was about five minutes away. Several sources who had ties to the investigation suspected that the hit-and-run driver was probably headed toward Cleveland.

But this critical clue soon fell by the wayside under the direction of Lt. Mike Bushman, the road deputy put in charge of the homicide by then-Manitowoc County Sheriff Tom Kocourek.

According to Bushman's report, the Newton resident “was unable to tell me which direction the suspect vehicle may have went after the pieces fell off.”

Another major misstep occurred just five days after the fatality.

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On the day of Hochstetler's funeral, multiple car parts were visible in the thawing snow at the far edge of the victim's driveway along Manitowoc County CR. The boy's body was found 50 yards up the road.

"(The parts) were right up by the road," Manitowoc resident Sylvia (Hynek) Schmidt told USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin. "I just remember I was thinking, 'This doesn't look like it had been weathered.'"

The parts appeared to be a section of headlight housing with letters and numbers stamped into it, Manitowoc sheriff's deputy Jason Jost reported at the time.

"I also observed three other pieces of plastic lying just around the corner," Jost's Jan. 15, 1999 report stated. All four of the parts "appeared to be from a newer style car," Jost wrote.

There had been no other recent collisions along the two-lane highway around the time of her son's death, said Debi Hochstetler, the victim's mother.

Nevertheless, Bushman determined that these fresh car parts were not relevant to his investigation.

"I checked with Lt. Bushman and due to the fact the pieces looked newer, he did not believe they belong to the suspect vehicle on the hit-and-run fatality," Jost wrote in his 1999 report. "At this time no further followup will need to be done."

Looking back, Schmidt said she is dumbfounded that Manitowoc County dismissed the newer-model car parts without a good explanation.

"It was probably part of the vehicle that killed Ricky,” she told USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin.

DOCUMENT: State gives Manitowoc County suggestions to solve Hochstetler hit and run

DOCUMENT:DCI interviews Rob Hermann's ex-girlfriend

A review of the sheriff's department case file indicated Manitowoc County never explored the possibility that a car might be involved in the crime.

Within hours of the overnight crash, juvenile detention center Lt. Rob Hermann, now the county sheriff, assured Bushman that the hit-and-run vehicle was a 1985 to 1988 Chevy truck, Suburban or Blazer. Days later, Bushman speculated that the tiny pieces of broken grill found along the rural highway may also belong to a 1988 to 1991 full-size van.

It seemed that every decision Hermann and Bushman made put Manitowoc County farther away from identifying Ricky Hochstetler's killer.

A misdirected investigation

Within hours of the crime, Hermann directed the law enforcement agency to obtain a large master vehicle registry from the state — based solely on vehicles he wanted Manitowoc County to look for.

"UPS Overnight delivered a large packet from the DOT of all 1985-1988 Chevrolets and 1985-1988 GMC trucks," Bushman wrote in his Jan. 14, 1999 report. "Contact was made with several local police administrators by phone and a request for assistance was made."

This was a recipe for disaster, the DCI discovered several years after the fact.

There were numerous instances when Manitowoc deputies inadvertently checked the same vehicle three or four times.

This is what Bushman told state agents in 2004: "Bushman stated that the Wisconsin Department of Transportation provided the Sheriff's Department with a list of approximately 25,000 vehicles in a five-county area that matched the description of the striking vehicle and all of them were cleared."

The DCI, however, was troubled by Manitowoc County's overall investigation methods on Hochstetler's case.

"In reviewing the reports ... many of the vehicles that were reported cleared do not have detailed descriptions of how they were cleared," special agent Eric Szatkowski advised Bushman. "This review assumes that every officer did a physical inspection of every vehicle, looking closely for signs of repair/replaced parts in areas that were damaged or could have been damaged. If each officer for each vehicle inspected did not follow that procedure, there is a possibility the striking vehicle was missed."

Even though there were strong suspicions that the hit-and-run driver had roots in southern Manitowoc County — given the hit-and-run driver's path of travel — Bushman and Hermann's decisions kept department efforts focused elsewhere.

In 1999, Bushman directed other road patrol deputies such as Andrew Colborn to chase leads as far away as Appleton, Fond du Lac, Green Bay, Kaukauna, Marinette, Menasha, Neenah, Oconto, Omro, Shawano and Waupaca.

The sheriff at the time, Tom Kocourek, also perpetuated the conclusions reached by Hermann that the hit-and-run motorist was a late model truck or van — even though several car parts had been found in close proximity to the death scene. In one of his final actions on the case as sheriff, Kocourek informed the media he was sending some of the vehicle debris to the FBI's Washington, D.C., lab for analysis. He waited nearly a full year to do so.

In March of 2000, the FBI said it was unable to determine the precise year, color, make and model. The FBI agreed that the parts submitted by Manitowoc County may belong to a 1985 to 1988 Chevrolet Blazer, truck or Suburban, but not a van.

The FBI, however, was not notified that the grill parts found at the scene came with a broken evidence chain of custody, raising questions about their authenticity. The FBI was not aware that the sheriff's official who took possession of the grill parts at the crime scene had access to his family's scrapyard and would later be questioned by the DCI as a hit-and-run suspect himself.

Moreover, the FBI was not asked to examine those newer style car parts, including the headlight lamp, that Deputy Jost recovered from the edge of the victim's driveway close to the death scene.

Avenues not explored

Although immediate suspicion centered on the Club Bil-Mar banquet hall just up the road from the crash, Kocourek waited 45 days before suggesting that deputies find out if the club had a list of patrons on the night of the homicide. Of the roughly 1,000 pages of reports turned over to USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin to comply with a public records request, none of the sheriff's reports addressed whether any follow-up investigation occurred surrounding the Bil-Mar.

From the outset, Kocourek, who did not return a message from USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin, didn't make it a top priority for his detectives or deputies to canvass local bars, bowling lanes or late-night diners for leads and suspects; conduct any round-the-clock surveillance near the crash site or near the rural intersection in Newton where signs of evidence were found; inspect the salvage yards near Cleveland and Sheboygan, even though there was a strong chance the hit-and-run driver would fix or destroy his damaged vehicle to avoid suspicion; and scour the rural roads and ditches for additional vehicle debris that may trace back to the hit-and-run driver.

Kocourek also let several weeks pass before volunteer firefighters were summoned to the crime scene along County CR to melt down the snow and ice. The effort yielded 126 gray grill pieces, three black pieces, two small pieces of Chevrolet emblem, one gold glasses frame and one lens, reports show. "Most were very small and of no identifying quality at this point and time," Bushman stated.

In 2000, Kocourek announced his retirement. Petersen became sheriff. Rob Hermann was promoted to undersheriff.

Bushman, who ran the unsolved Hochstetler investigation, was promoted to third in command of the sheriff's department.

In the coming years, Detective James Lenk was put in charge of the cold case. Lenk took no initiative to interact with the victim's family. He was the same detective featured in "Making a Murderer" accused of planting blood and a spare key to secure Steven Avery's arrest in the 2005 death of Teresa Halbach.

In January 2004, the victim's mother continued with her annual tradition of making herself available for media interviews to mark the anniversary of her son's unsolved death.

She said she took this step because the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department was taking no initiative to keep the unsolved homicide in the community spotlight.

After a Green Bay television station aired a 2004 story, a woman called Debi Hochstetler at home asking "if she was the person who lost her son."

The woman told Debi Hochstetler "that the person who killed her son was a cop and that she gave the last name of the person as (Hermann)," DCI reports from 2004 showed. "Hochstetler stated that the woman gave her a first name for (Hermann) as well, but that she could not remember it at this time." According to the tipster, the hit-and-run vehicle ended up at the Cleveland Auto salvage shortly after the crash and was subsequently crushed.

Cleveland Auto was the long-time family business in southern Manitowoc County along County XX operated by Bob Hermann and his family. The elder Hermann had worked as a traffic patrolman for Manitowoc County before retiring and two of his sons, Rob and Todd, followed in his footsteps and were hired into the sheriff's department by Kocourek during the 1980s.

Years later, when Debi Hochstetler brought her information to Bushman in 2004, he dismissed it, telling her Rob Hermann wasn't involved in the crime.

She said Bushman also told her that the individuals involved at Cleveland Salvage deal in more classic cars, not older trucks or vans like the one that hit her son, DCI reports show.

Not long afterward, Hochstetler asked Manitowoc County for a chance to review the police reports in her son's case.

Bushman and Lenk declined.

It was explained to her that the details would be too graphic for her to deal with emotionally, DCI reports said.

Debi Hochstetler also asked about bringing in additional investigative assistance from the DCI.

Lenk "told her that the state would not get involved because a car was involved and it was only a hit-and-run case," DCI reports reflect. "She said that Detective (Lenk) told her he checked into that already, but that he could not remember who he talked to."

Ultimately, the grieving mother decided to call the DCI anyway.

"Hochstetler stated that she felt the Sheriff's Department has not been as cooperative with her as they were in the initial stages of the investigation," DCI reports from 2004 stated. "She said she hoped that her efforts and DCI's review might help prevent another victim's family from having to deal with an unsolved hit-and-run death in Manitowoc."

To Hochstetler's surprise and dismay, Lenk never made a request seeking the DCI's help.

Nobody at the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Office made such a request during the previous five years, DCI documents indicate.

Thanks to her persistence, Hochstetler convinced DCI special agent Eric Szatkowski to explore the allegations floating around the Manitowoc community suggesting that an off-duty sheriff's deputy may have killed her son.

"Hochstetler also stated that the tip she received about a police officer being involved in her son's death was not the first time she heard that kind of a story," according to DCI documents.

In February 2004, the Milwaukee-based special agent got permission to investigate the Manitowoc County cold case.

Months later, Szatkowski came to Manitowoc to interview Rob Hermann. He denied any involvement in the crime.

"Inspector Hermann stated that he was not out and about that night including between 1 a.m. and 2 a.m. and that he was home with his family," the report stated.

During further questioning, the conversation turned to Rob Hermann's younger brother, who had been a traffic patrol sergeant at the time of the fatality.

The DCI agent asked whether Todd Hermann "ever had any vehicle similar to what police were looking for," Szatkowski stated. "Inspector Hermann responded no."

That September, Szatkowski closed his investigation without interviewing Rob Hermann's purported alibi witness on the night in question.

Szatkowski had also decided not to interview Todd Hermann.

DCI makes recommendations

In September 2004, the DCI compiled a five-page memo with in-depth recommendations to rejuvenate the cold-case investigation. The document was given to Bushman.

One suggestion was to contact Ken Olson at the Wisconsin State Crime Laboratory about "sending the tan/black paint chips to a special lab in Canada for further analysis."

Olson told the DCI there might be a way to narrow the paint to a particular year a manufacturer had used it, along with a particular model. These tan-colored paint chips with black primer were recovered by the state crime lab from the jacket of the hit-and-run victim, but became insignificant to Manitowoc County's probe back in 1999.

"With no new leads ... you might have to concentrate on searching for a tan vehicle," the DCI recommended.

Another DCI suggestion was to hold a news conference to announce that a review of the investigation had resulted in new leads.

"This will generate media attention, which you can use to again ask for the public's help," Szatkowski advised. "It might make the person responsible nervous enough to make him or her slip up and say something or it could bother the conscience of a co-conspirator enough to come forward."

The DCI also urged Manitowoc County to contact the state. "Ask (Wisconsin Department of Transportation) to give you another list that shows only those vehicles that were sold or scrapped within six months of the accident," records showed.

The DCI reiterated its concern over the way Bushman and his deputies cleared vehicles in the case, citing a 2002 hit-and-run fatality in Dodge County: "In that case, involving a volunteer firefighter, the suspect's truck twice passed inspection by investigators who missed the repairs because they did not know what to look for. Trained inspectors from the State Patrol were called in to help by Dodge County and the vehicle was finally identified. A body shop owner actually assisted in the cover-up and this nearly allowed the perpetrator to get away with the crime."

Szatkowski advised Bushman: "The suggestions I've included in this letter are time-sensitive and might have a low probability of success. However, in my years of experience in working cold cases, there are no shortcuts that can be taken in a case like this."

It is unclear to what degree the recommendations were ever followed by Manitowoc County.

John Ferak of USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin: 920-993-7115 or jferak@gannett.com; on Twitter @johnferak

THE HOCHSTETLER INVESTIGATION: A 3-PART SERIES

On Jan. 10, 1999, high school student Ricky Hochstetler was killed along a dark county highway in rural Manitowoc while walking home from a friend's house. The hit-and-run driver was never caught. The crime has been marred by long-standing suspicions of a Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department cover-up.

This year, Manitowoc County's most high-profile cold case has drawn renewed interest, particularly from "Making a Murderer" viewers; many of the same Manitowoc sheriff's officials who were involved in the 1985 and 2005 convictions of Steven Avery also had roles in the Hochstetler unsolved homicide.

During the past eight months, the USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin has investigated the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department's handling of the hit-and-run homicide. We inspected close to 1,000 pages of reports generated by either Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department or the Wisconsin Division of Criminal Investigation. Current Manitowoc County Sheriff Rob Hermann was investigated by the DCI as a suspect while he served as an undersheriff/inspector, DCI reports show.

Part 1: Suspicions of a cover-up: Within weeks of Ricky Hochstetler's death, several employees at the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department start to suspect that an off-duty deputy may be the hit-and-run driver.

Part 2: Mistake-riddled homicide probe: Though broken parts from a newer style car were discovered in the thawing snow near the site of Ricky Hochstetler's hit-and-run fatality, ex-Sheriff Tom Kocourek's administration dismissed the evidence, insisting that an older model truck or van was involved.

Part 3: Mother wants to forgive her son's killer: After 17½ years of heartache, Debi Hochstetler longs for the truth regarding her son's hit-and-run homicide.