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| DNA Data bank Leads to Inmate Being Charged in 1987 Killing |
| By Henderson Gleaner |
| Published: 11/26/2002 |
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A man serving a 40-year sentence in Indiana for attempted murder has been charged with murder in the shotgun slaying of a woman 15 years ago. Dennis Marcus Leer was linked to the Dec. 30, 1987, killing of Marie Kline, 20, of Elkhart through DNA found on her using the data bank of convicted felons in the state prison system, Elkhart County Prosecutor Michael Cosentino said last week. A confirmation DNA test was made in August and a warrant for Leer's arrest was issued Thursday. Chief Deputy Prosecutor Michael Christofeno described Leer as an intimate friend of Kline. Kline left her home about 20 miles east of South Bend after answering a doorbell sometime after midnight. She never returned home. Her body was found about a mile and a half from her home two days later by state police. She had been shot with a shotgun. Leer, 35, was convicted in 1988 of attempted murder in an unrelated case and received a 40-year sentence. Ginger Evans, Kline's mother, said she was pleased that charges had finally been filed. In a 1992 report in 1992, Elkhart County sheriff's investigators said they had two suspects, but not enough evidence for an arrest. Christofeno said state police began investigating the case in January and handled it as though it was brand new. The Goshen News reported Tuesday that prosecutors stopped short of criticizing the sheriff's department, which handled the case for nearly 15 years. Friction over how the investigation was conducted resulted in the firing of Detective Werner Wegener last year after a scuffle with his supervisor. Wegener claimed his investigation was hampered by his superiors and he was suspended from duty for investigating the crime after being told to stop. He has filed a lawsuit against the department, claiming he was improperly fired. |
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