Treatment Abuse, Behavior Modification, Thought Reform > Public Sector Gulags

Alleged rape in Missoula County Juvenile Detention Facility

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Ursus:
Reading these comments really brings home the degree of cronyism and political corruption there appears to exist in Montana... Little surprise then, that this state is home to several programs.

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Comments left for the above article, "Missoula man seeks to have rape conviction overturned after alleged victim recants testimony" (by Mike Dennison; Dec. 14, 2010; Missoulian):


accobra said on: December 15, 2010, 7:54 am
Just wondering how many times this has happened in the past where the county prosecuter gets a hard on for a conviction and doesn't look at the big picture. Then some kid gets his butt convicted for a false accusation because the accuser is a minor. Looks good on the prosecuters resume though...
And of course they try to back peddle and make it look like the person is just trying to get out of something. God forbid they admit the screwed the pooche. Even though the accuser is saying it didn't happen!!!!!Buzz Feedback said on: December 15, 2010, 8:55 am
Big Fred is all about being a hard-a$$ with people where there's a question about the conviction? But if you run over somebody while you're loaded or rape your cousin for 10 years straight you get a plea bargain and a slap on the wrist. And this guy just got re-elected?another voice said on: December 15, 2010, 9:43 am
I am just wondering how many times someone convicted of a crime claims their innocence? Not saying a person cannot be wrongfully convicted but in this case if I remember the facts correctly there were witnesses besides the victim. So it was not just one person's word against another which seems to be the case in most if not all of the wrongful conviction cases that are overturned. It seems like someone would have caved during the initial investigation and/or trial. They were all minors so not hardened enough to hang tough during interrogations. IMO. And I am not swayed by a recantation 8 years after the fact. The vic in the rape case is now in prison, who knows if there has been undue pressure put on him by this Marble guy when he was in or by some one on his behalf. I'd be interested to know if polygraphs were used before the original trial. They are not admissible during trial but the prosecutors do use them on both vics and perps to help them sort though the BS.babblingin said on: December 15, 2010, 11:10 am
OMG!!!
*****Missoula County Attorney Fred Van Valkenburg, who had seen the petition only briefly Tuesday afternoon, said it's surprising to see a victim recanting testimony eight years later.
"It's just one more thing that Cody Marble is trying to do to avoid responsibility for his case," Van Valkenburg said. "We're just going to have to deal with it." *******

Did he actually say that??? No surprize...it sounds exactly like words that would come out of his stupid mouth.....he really does need to take responsiblility for the innocent kidz lives that he has screwed up because they weren't U of M Frat boys or their parents weren't U of M alumuni....or no money or favors were offered to him in return for his support....or better yet, they weren't from a family of his U of M fellow students families who, to this day, he is still trying to get their respect and admiration from......I've dealt with his sleazy, indignant court conduct on a couple of occasions ~ the second resulting from the fact he knew he would be cross-examining me so LIED to have me removed as star witness....and now, this conduct (he briefly looked at the petition before opening his stupid mouth???) has just justified my disgust of him and the fact that I think he is a waste of the county's payroll.....wish I knew Cody on a level where I could be a witness for him...just to see if Fred would result (or continue on) to his lying ways...Buzz and Accobra....I'm so with u on this one!!Smilely said on: December 15, 2010, 12:18 pm
It is very important to prosecute the guilty, but it is more important to exonerate the innocent. The bull crap that goes on in this county between the police including detectives, the prosecutors, the courts, a few high profile attorneys and the Missoulian needs to be exposed with more stories like this. I hope you the best Cory and I believe in your innocence 100%. I was in jail when all this bull went down and we have met and talked at length. You are a fine young man. Missoula is loaded with crooks employed in positions of authority - Judge John Odlin, County Attorney Fred Van Valkenburg, Karen Orzech, (now) Judge Karen Townsend (one of the biggest incompetent liars to ever come down the pike), Detective Jamie Merifield (couldn't investigate her way out of a wet paper bag), Police Officer Stacy Lear, and Police Officer Travis Welsh only to name a few and those you wouldn’t think of having positions of authority but don't kid yourself for a moment - attorney John Smith (crooked as they come), the YWCA and the Crime Victim's Advocate again to name only a few. And now that Judy Wang is gone the streets of Missoula and particularly the families of Missoula are now that much safer. I can tell you from experience. I was falsely accused of a crime years ago in this town. One of the highest profile cases this town has ever seen. Although I was found not guilty at trial of a possible thirty years in prison, the police department and courts have never stopped harassing me. Since then I have had the SWAT team come to my house twice and once up town. In total I have been charged with seven felonies and twenty-seven misdemeanors without a single conviction. Only seven percent of all criminal case goes to trial - 4% are found guilty and 3% are found not guilty. I was not only one of the three percent found not guilty but turned around and successfully sued the alleged victim (and have retired quite well as a direct result from the suit - thank you very much!) and the Missoulian never reported it. I am telling you these people just make stories up, over charge people and when the jails have room, the bails are real high and the bails are low when things get crowded - not based on a person's constitutional rights of bail. Don't give up the good fight Cory but I need to warn you the battle will continue long after you are exonerated. For me it has been an incredible journey and I am still cleaning up the wreckage caused by so many of Missoula's self-serving individuals who unfortunately we pay to supposedly protect us. I am now a uniformed officer for a federal agency and although I have been permanently expelled form the University of Montana (unable to ever to attended classes there again for a crime that simply never happened) I occasionally lead large groups of UM students on community projects.Snail said on: December 15, 2010, 12:19 pm
Van Valkenburg needs to shut his mouth, for sure. I was having a lunch at a thai restaurant this past year when he yelled, yes, yelled and snorted, at me, three tables away,for being on my phone. He embarassed himself in the restuarant as he seems to have done again and again in far far far more important situations. Bravo to this young man for working to free his name from a rape case. As for Valkenburg,he will never clear his name with me.

I babblingin said: "OMG!!!*****Missoula County Attorney Fred Van Valkenburg, who had seen the petition only briefly Tuesday afternoon, said it's surprising to see a victim recanting testimony eight years later."It's just one more thing that Cody Marble is trying to do to avoid responsibility for his case," Van Valkenburg said. "We're just going to have to deal with it." *******Did he actually say that??? No surprize...it sounds exactly like words that would come out of his stupid mouth.....he really does need to take responsiblility for the innocent kidz lives that he has screwed up because they weren't U of M Frat boys or their parents weren't U of M alumuni....or no money or favors were offered to him in return for his support....or better yet, they weren't from a family of his U of M fellow students families who, to this day, he is still trying to get their respect and admiration from......I've dealt with his sleazy, indignant court conduct on a couple of occasions ~ the second resulting from the fact he knew he would be cross-examining me so LIED to have me removed as star witness....and now, this conduct (he briefly looked at the petition before opening his stupid mouth???) has just justified my disgust of him and the fact that I think he is a waste of the county's payroll.....wish I knew Cody on a level where I could be a witness for him...just to see if Fred would result (or continue on) to his lying ways...Buzz and Accobra....I'm so with u on this one!!"=========================================================================steamed said on: December 15, 2010, 5:33 pm
I have never met Van Valkenburg but after reading his comment I hope I never have any dealings with a person like him. On a ballot if he's the only one running I'll write in Lenin.M728 said on: December 15, 2010, 10:16 pm
Whether the conviction is overturned or not Marble will be remembered as a sex offender because he decided to make his case so public.MslaRick said on: December 16, 2010, 1:26 pm
The only way this type of crap will get resolved is when the day comes that punishment for falsely accusing someone of such terrible crimes is met with the same punishment as the actual crime. To bad it never seems to work that way, but disgusting when truth is rejected in favor of saving face. If these quotes by our county attorney are accurate, I only hope the Missoulian continues to dig into this and the ethical questions it raises. This wouldn't be the first time (Downtown) has ran someone into the ground and destroyed their character in favor of truth. If you are innocent Cody, never give up and be an example of hope and justice. Despite the political pressure to keep quiet, speak up. If the county attorney doesn't want to be a symbol of truth and justice by taking the time to look at evidence before making a statement regarding your guilt or innocence let the community deal with him and don't be deterred.Rob Tabish said on: December 16, 2010, 5:10 pm
i don't recall the original case, but there should have been forensic evidence collected at the time and that evidence should still be admissible in court. simply relying on the testimony of someone who was convicted, himself, for other sex crimes...on both the defense and prosecution side of the case, both in the original conviction and now, leads me to believe that somebody screwed up. i can see why Van Valkenburg is being defensive.

© Copyright 2011, missoulian.com, Missoula, MT

Ursus:
The above article by Mike Dennison was also published the same day in the Billings Gazette under the title, "Victim recants testimony in jailhouse rape case in 2002." Here are the comments:


Scoob said on: December 14, 2010, 6:18 pm
don't they do rape kit tests????? I'm sure if there is one for female there is one for male.... and the WHOO HOOO is a bit smaller than the other whoooo hoooo....

You'd have hemorrhage/tearing etc.....

Maybe I got lost somewhere....danedog said on: December 14, 2010, 6:28 pm
Sounds like the county attorney is moron.theblondeone said on: December 14, 2010, 6:45 pm
I think things like this happen more often than we know. A jury would never believe that a victim has a motive to lie but will believe that the defendant is guilty just because they were accused.straightshooter said on: December 14, 2010, 7:15 pm
Who pays for the injustice?? Some cases have hard core evidence on druggies, thieves, car crimes etc. and the judge gives probation yet this guy gets the book, don't understand this.PitBull said on: December 14, 2010, 8:58 pm
I agree with Scoob.

Was a rape kit used, and was the boy examined?

They had rape kits (dna) in 2002 and years before that.

IF the boy who is now a young man IS telling the truth now trying to straighten up his life, then we basically have prosecutor's who don't want him to do what is right (recant)because it will make them look badly.Lenard said on: December 14, 2010, 9:20 pm
The same mentality that leads to wrongful convictions is the same mentality as all the wingnut freaks on these blogs who jump to conclusions and rant about judges handing out lenient sentences when they dont know the full storyNative Montanan 1 said on: December 15, 2010, 6:17 am
I wonder if the two of them also planned to share in the lawsuit that you know will be coming!Caitlin Copple said on: December 15, 2010, 9:35 am
I work for the Montana Innocence Project, and our investigation yielded the new evidence in this case. There was no rape kit because the "rape" was not reported right away. There was no physical evidence in the case, only the testimony of the complaining witness and the other boys who we believe were involved in the set-up of Cody Marble.nofeathers said on: December 15, 2010, 10:26 am
The one who made up the story should be prosecuted, and make restitution to the real victim. All those that made up the story should be held accountable!thinkaboutit said on: December 15, 2010, 10:36 am
I know what it's like to be on the falsely accused end of the deal. I feel for this guy and hope he gets things straightened out soon. Good luck Cody.SlackJaw said on: December 15, 2010, 10:46 am
I believe I've seen quite a few comments on his stories over the years, calling for forced castration, even death.
How many will come back now to retract those statements, I wonder... my guess is none.

Situations like this are why 'permanent' forms of punishment are simply not wise to use.jimmers said on: December 15, 2010, 10:58 am
Sounds to me like the Prosecuting Attorney doesn't want to admit they could be wrong and face the reprecussions that are sure to follow.Fighting for the innocent said on: December 15, 2010, 11:28 am
Van Valkenburg needs to look at all of the evidence and forget about another trial. Why go to the expense of another trial when all of the evidence points unequivocally to Cody's innocence. Common Man!!!!Infamous J said on: December 15, 2010, 11:43 am
Apparently Van Valkenburg is in the running for worst county attorney ever. Chances are, he'll be a neck and neck with Paxinos when the votes are all in...

© Copyright 2011, The Billings Gazette, Billings, MT

Ursus:
The above Mike Dennison article was also published that day in the Montana Standard under the title, "Missoula man fights rape conviction." Here are the comments:


jonnyonthespot said on: December 15, 2010, 12:50 am
The system definitely failed him. I'd say the state has a lot of reparations for the hell this guy went through. Good luck Marble.mtdutch101 said on: December 15, 2010, 8:38 am
Probably not the State's fault if the "victim" testified falsely and the jury believed him. That's pretty much how the system works. What I find stunning is VanValkenberg, the prosecutor's statement. This doesn't seem to be Marble's doing, it sort of seems like the "victim" is coming clean. For the prosecutor to not even give that any credence, or admit that it raises at the very least some doubt is the very definition of vanity and egocentricity. What a tool.

© Copyright 2011, Mtstandard.com, 25 West Granite Street Butte, MT

Ursus:
And... the above article was also published that day in the Ravalli Republic under the title, "Missoula: Alleged jailhouse rape victim recants story in letter." Here's a comment left for that article:


Christina said on: December 16, 2010, 12:32 am
This is just ridiculous. What I want to know is if the person who accused him and ruined his life for eight years is going to get in any trouble for this. I just don't understand how it could take eight years for this to come out. I hope they do drop this. I also don't understand what a seventeen year old and a thirteen year old would be doing around each other in jail. I know they are both minors but you think they would keep them apart anyway.

Copyright 2011 RavalliRepublic.com.

Ursus:
And... lastly, the above article by Mike Dennison was also published the following day in the Helena Independent Record under the title, "Man fighting prison rape conviction produces new evidence." There were no comments left for this article, or, perhaps, it has been too long and they are no longer accessible. But here's a pic that accompanied it:



Currently on parole, Cody Marble was sentenced to 20 years in prison after a fellow inmate at the Missoula County Juvenile Detention Facility accused him of rape. The alleged victim has now recanted the accusation. 'I didn’t think this could happen in America. I feel like the system has failed me,' says Marble. Linda Thompson/Missoulian


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