Opinion

Op-Ed: Skakel brother: Michael is innocent

In spite of the fact my brother, Michael Skakel, has sat in prison an innocent man for the last 10 years, it was gratifying to see Greenwich Time reporters Neil Vigdor and Frank MacEachern produce an objective piece that laid out many of the facts that have never truly been compiled into one story ("Legal Drama Lives On," news story, June 10).

However, there are a couple of glaring inaccuracies -- not from reporting errors -- but from the assertions of Mark Fuhrman, the disgraced cop and felon turned "author," who rejects the well-documented Tony Bryant evidence which points to who really killed Martha. You don't have to believe me or my family, it's available for anyone to view on YouTube: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFgJbaJDtpE) and (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ml6inYyz3So&feature=relmfu).

By invoking noted forensic expert Dr. Henry Lee, it's the convicted perjurer Fuhrman asserting that we are "just putting out stuff that muddies the water."

I'm not sure of the quality of water Fuhrman drinks or bathes in, but it certainly isn't potable. Additionally, Fuhrman speculated that Michael was at the Moxley property at the time of the murder. He was not. Michael was with me. I've testified to that fact and truthfully passed a polygraph test. And this felon, Fuhrman, continues to profit from this case through his book and TV movie.

As we continue to dig deeper -- everyone, including the media -- is re-examining this horrible miscarriage of justice and is finally beginning to see who has the most to lose once Michael gets a new trial (and we are confident he will get a new trial).

It will be interesting to watch the short list of profiteers, led by Fuhrman, begin to scurry once the bright light comes on. It will be unprecedented.

Here are the facts: Dr. Lee did not have knowledge of the Bryant evidence when he gave his testimony. If he was asked, and he wasn't, he would be the first to say that you don't have to be a forensic expert to hear what Tony Bryant had to say.

The forensic evidence -- what little there was -- is critical. The two hairs found at the crime scene were described as one with African-American characteristics and the other with Asian characteristics. The police have never identified who they belong to but the hairs match the ethnic profiles of Bryant's friends, Adolph Hasbrouck and Burt Tinsley -- who placed themselves in Belle Haven that night. Bryant said they had Skakel golf clubs. The hairs do not belong to my brother Michael.

Circumstantial? Possibly, if you can't match the hairs to another human.

On the other hand, though, it was circumstantial, flimsy evidence and snake-oil persuasion tactics that convicted my innocent brother:

Michael was convicted on the testimony of a heroin addict who came forward for a $50,000 reward after he claimed to have heard Michael give a confession. His testimony was proved to be false.

Michael was convicted by reports of "evidence" gathered from the National Enquirer.

Michael was convicted by the prosecution's blatantly deceitful presentation that took his words so out of context, it caused Leslie Stahl from CBS to comment in her interview with lead prosecutor Jonathan Benedict, "If I did this at 48 Hours, I'd be fired."

If you add in the "Kennedy cousin" phenomenon along with his self-centered, media-hungry defense attorney Mickey Sherman, the circus -- which was my brother's trial -- is complete.

My brother Michael didn't have a chance.

I urge readers to take a moment to watch and listen to the two interviews Tony Bryant conducted. Both are easily available on YouTube. After you watch them -- and then weigh it against what passed for evidence at his trial -- I ask you to make up your own mind.

When the "evidence" was heard in a mock trial by high school business-law students at Darien High, they came back that Michael deserves a new trial ("Skakel Deserves a New Trial," Greenwich Time, June 7, 2007). It didn't take a rocket scientist to conclude that my brother was innocent, it only took a group of high school students to look at the facts.

The Innocence Project is also looking into Michael's case. They have reversed the court decisions of nearly 300 wrongly convicted people across the country, with most of those occurring since 2002 when Michael was convicted.

Wrongful convictions are an emerging reality in our criminal justice system -- it can happen to anyone. Thanks to the objective reporting from Greenwich Time for compiling such a thorough report and allowing us to be heard.

John Skakel is one of Michael Skakel's five brothers and lives in Portland, Ore.