Andy Thompson

USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin

Appleton attorney Len Kachinsky refuses to watch the popular Netflix series "Making a Murderer," but he's keenly aware of the blistering criticism that's come his way since the controversial documentary was released three weeks ago.

Kachinsky, who represented then-16-year-old Brendan Dassey in the 2005 murder of Teresa Halbach, has been ripped on Internet sites. He's been called a "disgusting human being," a "pure disgrace to the Wisconsin judicial system" and a man with a "sickened soul."

One outraged viewer of the Netflix series left this message for Kachinsky: "May you die of cancer soon."

"After a while, you get used to it," said Kachinsky, 62, who has been treated for multiple myeloma, a cancer formed by malignant plasma cells, and leukemia in the past seven-plus years.

Dassey was 16 when Halbach, a 25-year-old photographer, was murdered in Manitowoc County. Both Dassey and his uncle, Steven Avery, were convicted of being a party to first-degree intentional homicide for killing Halbach when she visited Avery Auto Salvage near Mishicot to take pictures for a car magazine. Both were sentenced to life in prison. Dassey, who is now 26, will not become eligible for parole consideration until Oct. 31, 2048.

Despite the barrage of caustic comments that have peppered his Twitter account, office voicemail and cellphone, Kachinsky told Post-Crescent Media from his office in downtown Appleton on Tuesday that he feels no responsibility for Dassey's homicide conviction. He said his pretrial work on the case, which included discussions of a plea bargain for Dassey, was upheld by the Wisconsin Court of Appeals.

“A lot of it involves a misinterpretation of the evidence,” he said of the withering criticism.

RELATED:Coverage of the Steven Avery case

He admits erring by not being present when Dassey was interviewed by his investigator in May 2006, but insists that it had no bearing on the guilty verdict against Dassey because it was never introduced at trial.

Kachinsky, who is in the process of closing his legal practice in Appleton to concentrate on criminal appeals cases, also noted that the interrogation in March 2006 in which Dassey confessed to his involvement in Halbach's death occurred before he was assigned to the case. And he reminded critics that he had been removed from the case by the presiding judge before Dassey went to trial because he failed to attend the May 2006 interview involving the investigator.

In that interview, the investigator insisted that Dassey bolster his previous confession with diagrams and additional details even though Dassey resisted. Kachinsky said he didn’t attend the interview because he had an Army training session in Milwaukee the following morning.

Dassey’s state appeals have been exhausted, but a federal lawsuit that contends he was illegally arrested and imprisoned — and should be released or receive a new trial — is awaiting a ruling by a Milwaukee-based magistrate. Attorneys for Dassey claim that his March 1, 2006 confession was coerced by detectives and that Kachinsky wasn’t looking out for Dassey’s best interests by pursuing a potential plea agreement with prosecutors.

“Everyone has a right to have a loyal attorney,” Laura Nirider, a member of Dassey’s current legal team, told Post-Crescent Media in late December.

Kachinsky contends that he was loyal to Dassey. He acknowledges pursuing plea talks with authorities to limit Dassey’s prison time to 20 years for testifying against Avery. But he insisted that the final decision was up to Dassey.

“My thought is it was the best strategy,” he said.

Kachinsky said he found no fault with how law enforcement acted during the 2006 interrogation.

In the wide-ranging interview with Post-Crescent Media, Kachinsky addressed other issues:

On allegations that detectives coerced Dassey’s confession and made him say things that weren’t true: “You could look at it that way if you were a conspiracy theorist.”

On the most inaccurate or unnerving criticism: “That I ruined a young kid’s life, or that I was involved in a conspiracy to frame (Dassey).”

On his initial impression of Dassey: “He looked like a kid who was reluctant to drop a dime on a relative (Avery), but was convinced by detectives to do so.”

On the guilty verdict against Dassey: “I was not surprised.”

On his decision not to watch “Making a Murderer”: “I have never watched Netflix, and I don’t have any desire to see (the documentary).”

On the nasty remarks about his representation of Dassey: “They’re so judgmental.”

Andy Thompson: 920-996-7270, or awthompson@postcrescent.com; on Twitter @Thompson_AW