John Ferak

USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin

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It's been more than a decade since 25-year-old freelance photographer Teresa Halbach from Calumet County was murdered, a case that ignited a Wisconsin media frenzy.

Last month's release of the Netflix documentary "Making A Murderer" has captured worldwide attention and put the murder trials of Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey once again in the spotlight. In response, many are curious about some of the key people introduced in the documentary. USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin has compiled a list to bring you up to speed.

Where are they now?

Steven Avery was convicted in 2007 by a Manitowoc County jury of first-degree intentional homicide and being a felon in possession of a firearm. The jury acquitted Avery of mutilating a corpse. Charges of first-degree sexual assault and kidnapping were dropped by special prosecutor Ken Kratz before the trial. Avery was sentenced to life in prison by Manitowoc County judge Patrick Willis. Avery, now 53, is serving his prison term at the Waupun Correctional Institution in Waupun.

Brendan Dassey was 17 when a jury from Dane County convicted him in 2007 of first-degree intentional homicide, mutilation of a corpse and second-degree sexual assault in Teresa Halbach's murder. Dassey, now 26, is an inmate at the Green Bay Correctional Institution.

Lt. James Lenk was a longtime Manitowoc County Sheriff's detective. Lenk thrust himself into the Teresa Halbach investigation from the outset, even though her disappearance was reported to the neighboring Calumet County Sheriff's Office, not Manitowoc County.

Once Steven Avery emerged as a prime suspect in Halbach's disappearance, Lenk discovered critical physical evidence to link Avery to the murder of Halbach. Lenk discovered a key to Halbach's RAV4 on the carpeted floor of Avery's bedroom even though the room had been searched by Calumet County investigators numerous times beforehand. Lenk was also on the Avery property four months later when a fragmented bullet was discovered inside of Avery's garage, days after authorities arrested Avery's nephew, Brendan, in connection with the murder. Avery's lawyers suspected that Lenk planted the key and fragmented bullet to shore up law enforcement's mostly circumstantial case against Avery. Lenk retired a few years ago from the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Office. He resides in Green Valley, Arizona. Lenk did not respond to phone messages, and no one answered the door Jan. 8 when a USA TODAY NETWORK reporter from The Arizona Republic rang the doorbell of his home in a golf course community in Green Valley, south of Tucson, Arizona.

Timeline: History of the Steven Avery case

Related: “Making a Murderer” coverage, archived stories and more

Previously: Who's who in the Steven Avery case

Sgt. Andrew Colborn, Manitowoc County Sheriff's Office: On Nov. 8, 2005, Colborn accompanied Lenk to re-search the inside of Avery's bedroom even though the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Office was not supposed to be directly involved in the murder investigation because of a conflict of interest. After Lenk and Colborn were inside the bedroom, a RAV4 key was found next to Avery's bed. The key was later determined to contain Avery's DNA. Only weeks before Halbach vanished, Colborn was questioned by civil rights lawyers as part of Avery's $36 million lawsuit against Manitowoc County.

In 1995, when Colborn worked in the county jail, he received a call from a Brown County detective who believed he had an inmate in jail, now known to be Gregory Allen, who committed a rape in Manitowoc County that someone else was in prison for. Colborn and his supervisors decided not to vigorously pursue the matter. Since Lenk retired, Colborn was promoted to lieutenant overseeing the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Office detectives, a position he continues to hold.

Sheriff Kenneth Petersen, Manitowoc County Sheriff's Office: Petersen was the sergeant who arrested Avery in the connection with the 1985 rape of Penny Beernsten. In 2003, when Petersen was sheriff, DNA tests proved Avery was wrongfully convicted and the real rapist was Gregory Allen, a known sexual predator. After Teresa Halbach vanished on Oct. 31, 2005, Petersen made Steven Avery the focus of the investigation, ignoring other potential leads. After Avery's arrest, Petersen gave several television interviews before Avery went to trial, declaring that if Avery was released from custody that he would kill again, and that allegations by the defense that detectives planted evidence to incriminate Avery were unproven. After six years as the sheriff, Petersen retired in 2007, after more than 30 years in the sheriff's department. In 2015, The Compass, a Catholic newspaper for the Green Bay diocese, wrote a feature story on Petersen, "Retired sheriff has a new beat." Petersen, now in his late 60s, remains active at the St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Manitowoc and serves as a member of the board of directors at The Haven, Manitowoc's first homeless shelter for men, The Compass reported. The newspaper also reported that Petersen volunteers at Peter's Pantry and the Capitol Civic Center, is a member of the Francis Creek Lions Club and serves on a local Crime Stoppers board.

Ken Kratz, former Calumet County district attorney: Kratz's successful prosecution of Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey in the 2005 murder of Teresa Halbach became a crowning accomplishment.

A Town of Harrison resident, Kratz considered a run for Congress in 2008 against U.S. Rep. Tom Petri, a Republican. Kratz had been an assistant prosecutor in La Crosse County from 1987 until 1992, when Gov. Tommy Thompson appointed him the Calumet County district attorney. In 2010, Kratz resigned from office after The Associated Press reported he had sent more than 30 text messages in 2009 to a 26-year-old woman whose ex-boyfriend was being prosecuted by Kratz for domestic violence. "I'm embarrassed and ashamed for the choices I made," Kratz said during a statement at the Calumet County Courthouse. "Protecting the rights of crime victims has been my life's work."

Kratz left the Fox Valley and relocated nearly six hours away to Superior, Wisconsin, where he opened a private practice and works as a defense attorney.

Len Kachinsky: Now, 62, Kachinsky continues to operate a private law practice in downtown Appleton. Kachinsky was the initial public defender appointed to represent Brendan Dassey, the 16-year-old nephew of Steven Avery. During an interview this month with the USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin, Kachinsky said he is in the process of closing his legal practice in Appleton to concentrate on criminal appeals cases. In 2006, Kachinsky was removed from the Halbach case and replaced with a different lawyer because Kachinsky allowed Dassey to be interviewed by homicide investigators without an attorney present. Attorneys who have handled appeals for Dassey, who was later convicted of murder, argued that Kachinsky was not looking out for Dassey's best interests by pursuing a potential plea agreement. Kachinsky said he has no desire to watch the Netflix documentary "Making a Murderer."

Michael O'Kelly was the private investigator retained by Kachinsky. O'Kelly pressured teenage defendant Brendan Dassey into admitting guilt and incriminating Avery in the murder of Halbach even though Dassey insisted he was innocent. O'Kelly ordered Dassey to sign a form that required Dassey to admit his involvement in the Halbach murder. Today, O'Kelly touts himself as a forensic expert witness who specializes in understanding cellular phone data. O'Kelly regularly travels around the country and puts on seminars for personnel in law enforcement and the criminal justice field. In March 2015, O'Kelly was one of the featured panelists at a Nebraska Criminal Defense Attorneys Association conference hosted in Omaha. The brochure called O'Kelly's presentation "Comprehensive Cell Tower Evidence Training."

Patrick Willis was the Manitowoc County judge who handled the courtroom proceedings in the Avery trial. After the verdict, Willis gave Avery a life prison sentence proclaiming Avery was "probably the most dangerous person to ever set foot in this courtroom." Leading up to the trial, Willis rejected numerous pretrial motions raised by Avery's lawyers, Jerome Buting and Dean Strang. Notably, Willis denied their request to present evidence of an alternative suspect other than Avery's co-defendant, Brendan Dassey. Willis retired in October 2012 at age 62 after 15 years on the bench. Willis was a 1968 graduate of Lincoln High School in Manitowoc and he served as the Manitowoc city attorney. In a 2012 interview, Willis said he planned to remain active by doing mediation.

Jerome Fox was the Manitowoc County judge who presided over the trial of Brendan Dassey, Avery's teenage nephew. In August 2007, Fox sentenced the 17-year-old Dassey to spend at least 41 years in prison before he could be eligible for parole. "While Avery was the primary motivating force, nothing prevented this defendant from saying no," Fox declared at Dassey's sentencing hearing. Fox continues to serve on the Manitowoc County bench.

Mike Halbach, brother of murder victim Teresa Halbach: Mike Halbach served as his family's spokesman during the court proceedings against Avery and Dassey. Halbach gave numerous interviews to the media, professing his family's praise for law enforcement's work. Halbach and his family continued to remain a forceful presence even during the appeals process.

"A jury of 12 of Steven Avery's peers found him guilty and that is good enough for us," Halbach told reporters. "We are here for Teresa. She can't be here for herself. Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey, they get an opportunity for a second chance. Teresa doesn't get the opportunity for a second chance." Halbach has worked for more than a decade for the Green Bay Packers. He is the team's director of football technology, according to Packers.com. According to the team website, Halbach has overseen the development and administration of football information systems and Halbach transitioned the NFL franchise from paper to digital playbooks and from standard to high-definition video.

Jerry Pagel was the sheriff of Calumet County who oversaw the criminal investigation into Teresa Halbach's murder. After eight years as sheriff, Pagel retired in 2010 at age 60.

Ryan Hillegas, ex-boyfriend of Teresa Halbach: When she disappeared, Hillegas organized a volunteer search effort to find Halbach or her vehicle, a missing RAV4. Hillegas also testified during the Avery trial that he visited Halbach at her house in rural Calumet County on Oct. 30, the day before she disappeared, but he could not remember the time. He also testified that he accessed her cellphone records after she went missing. Hillegas testified during the Avery trial that the investigators did not consider him a suspect and they did not ask him any questions about his whereabouts surrounding Teresa's disappearance. According to his Facebook profile, Hillegas studied nursing at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Now 35, Hillegas lives in Waukesha County and he has been a licensed registered nurse in Wisconsin since 2005, according to public records.

Scott Bloedorn, roommate of Teresa Halbach at the time of her disappearance: The two rented a farmhouse in rural Calumet County from Halbach's parents. According to trial testimony, Teresa and Bloedorn were not romantically involved. About a week after Halbach vanished, Bloedorn teamed up with Hillegas to organize a volunteer effort of the region trying to find any clues in Teresa's disappearance. He and Hillegas met with Pamela Sturm and gave her a camera after she suggested that she wanted to search the Avery Salvage Yard with her adult daughter in the hopes of finding any sign of Teresa. Shortly after her arrival, Sturm located the RAV4 buried under several tree branches. According to his LinkedIn profile, Bloedorn has worked in Madison since 2012 in conservation energy. From 2009 to 2012, he lived in Arizona and worked as an energy auditor.

Mark Wiegert and Tom Fassbender, the co-lead detectives on the Avery case: Wiegert remains a high-ranking lieutenant at the Calumet County Sheriff's Department in Chilton. Fassbender has since retired as a special agent from the Wisconsin Division of Criminal Investigations. In 2008, the Wisconsin Association of Homicide Investigators presented Fassbender and Wiegert with the statewide organization's prestigious Meritorious Service Award. "This case exemplifies cooperation between law enforcement agencies," stated former Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen. Fassbender joined the Wisconsin Department of Criminal Investigation in 1985 and has since retired from Wisconsin law enforcement. He moved to Nevada, where he worked hotel security in Las Vegas.

Dean Strang and Jerome Buting, distinguished Wisconsin trial lawyers: Both men have garnered national acclaim since last month's release of the Netflix documentary that chronicled their efforts to vigorously defend Steven Avery, centering their defense on their suspicion that the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Office planted false evidence against Avery in order to secure his conviction and avoid the potential of paying out a $36 million wrongful imprisonment judgment in connection with the agency's erroneous arrest of Avery for a 1985 rape he did not commit. Strang specializes in trial litigation in Madison at Strang Bradley LLC. Buting works at the criminal defense law firm of Buting, Williams & Stilling with offices in Brookfield and Glendale, Wisconsin.