Dream Killer: Cases The Proceedings Of The Wrongful Incarceration Of Ryan Ferguson

Dream Killer is a documentary that details the proceedings of the wrongful incarceration of Ryan Ferguson, who was sentenced 40 years in prison for the murder of Kent Heitholt (Jenks, 2015). This case is notably one of the oddest in terms of wrongful conviction cases, because when given the facts of the case it seems utterly illogical to convict Ryan Ferguson of the crime. Kent Heitholt was brutally murdered on October 31st, 2001 and sat for two years without any leads (Jenks, 2015). However, two years later Charles Erickson, a former friend of Ryan, had a dream that he had a part in the murder and thus this whole mess was born. From the very beginning proceedings were abnormal (Jenks, 2015). Ferguson’s bail was set at $20 million dollars

This case was subject to many errors throughout its duration. One of the largest immediate inaccuracies was that this case didn’t have many of the elements necessary to constitute a crime (Gaines & Miller, 2008). There was no proof of actus reus or mens rea, no concurrence, and the attendant circumstances did not incriminate Ryan Ferguson in any way (Gaines & Miller, 2008). Additionally, during the court proceedings Ferguson was not fully informed of his privilege against self-incrimination, and took the stand without being properly prepared for what was going to occur (Gaines & Miller, 2008). There were also many errors made under the supervision of Detective Kevin Crane, including eyewitness misidentification, false confessions, and law enforcement misconduct during the court proceedings (Gaines & Miller,

One example of this was in the eyewitness misidentification committed by Jerry Trump as well as blatant lying on the stand (Gaines & Miller, 2008). Additionally, due to the coercive nature of Detective Crane coupled with Charles Erickson’s mental incapacity led to a false confession on his behalf. Statistically there is no empirical validity in the notion of “repressed memories,” however, this was the basis of Erickson’s confession, a confession which incriminated both himself and Ryan Ferguson (Gaines & Miller, 2008). Lastly, the most prevalent source leading to Ryan’s wrongful conviction was excessive law enforcement misconduct committed primarily by Detective Crane (Gaines & Miller, 2008). Crane had a tendency to use defendants neutral statements and distort them into “confessions” and also used intense fear tactics to manipulate witnesses into saying what he wanted them to say (Jenks, 2015). Crane is a textbook example of what it means to commit prosecutorial misconduct, by exhibiting behaviors such as; improper arguments at trial, using emotional language to rile up the jury, allowing false testimony to stand, and failure to disclose evidence that could favor the accused (Cates,