Berrien County justice

If you're read my book SWEET FREEDOM, you are aware of the fact that some of us know who really shot Tom Schadler. Maurice Carter was accused of shooting him in what may have started out as an armed robbery. Schadler was an off-duty police officer who was shot and injured while shopping with his wife in a downtown Benton Harbor store.

Maurice Carter's only mistake was that he happened to be in Benton Harbor on the day of the shooting. He was a resident of Gary, Indiana, and so he didn't know Tom Schadler from any other guy on the street in Benton Harbor. That's why the Prosecutor could never show a motive.

The real shooter, on the other hand, was a drunken bully from the inner city who knew all the cops. And it turns out that many people from Benton Harbor know who really shot Tom Schadler. But, they're going to keep right on covering up for one of their own. As it turns out, Maurice Carter served 29 years for this crime. If you haven't read the book, please pick up a copy.

But now back to the shooter.

Even though Maurice Carter died in 2004, the case didn't die. We've tried to persuade the Berrien County Prosecutor's Office to reopen the case, to no avail. We have tapes made with a hidden microphone which pretty much point to the fact that Billy Lee not only shot Schadler, but also that he was very proud of the accomplishment. Word from our sources is that he still shows up at a drinking party now and then, boasting about how he "shot that white cop."

The reason the subject came up today is that one of our sources just gave us a tip that Billy Lee is back in town, after having moved to Ohio all these years. Word on the street is that he's thinking of moving back to Benton Harbor.

He might just as well.

The judicial system doesn't care.

The Prosecutor and the cops don't want to know anything about it. Why let facts get in the way of their opinions? This case is closed.

In Berrien County, the judicial system may sometimes be wrong, but it's never in doubt.

Comments

Doug Tjapkes said…
From Pat Shellenbarger:

Too bad the Prosecutor's office isn't willing to go after him, but that would mean they'd have to admit they had made a terrible mistake in Muarice's case. As you know better than I, one of the unfortunate results of a wrongful conviction is the real criminal goes free.

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