5 – The SUS Was Criticized For its Investigation
A Special Unit Senator (SUS) group was set up by the LAPD to handle the investigation, but its tactics and overall conduct have been called into question by some. A prime example of ‘bully-boy’ tactics came from SUS member Enrique Hernandez when he interviewed Sandy Serrano. The interview soon became an interrogation as Hernandez continued to tell Serrano that she didn’t see anyone. Hernandez also said: “Don’t shame his death by keeping this thing up […] I want to know why you did what you did.”
Eventually, Serrano complied and retracted her story. Soon, the fact that Serrano had withdrawn her tale was used to discredit other witnesses at the scene. As a number of these eyewitnesses had similar stories to one another, it became easy to cast doubt on almost every witness statement. Those who have viewed transcripts of the SUS’ interviews with witnesses point out that the group used a pattern of isolation and intimidation to force each individual to backtrack.
A more serious allegation against the SUS is that it failed to include information that witnesses had volunteered. Evan Freed is one of those who claim that some of the details they mentioned were omitted from the record. There are also suggestions that the SUS deliberately misplaced, hid, or even destroyed key evidence. Paul Sharaga wrote a memo which included details of his interaction with the elderly couple who had allegedly seen the lady in the polka-dot dress fleeing the scene. It vanished from evidence, but Sharaga had retained the original mimeograph.
One of the most serious claims of misconduct surrounds the door frame evidence. Several witnesses claim to have seen bullet holes in the frames, but the LAPD supposedly destroyed the frames after the trial. Even more astonishingly, the frames were never even entered into evidence at the trial. A teenager named Scott Enyart claims that he took photographs in the pantry, but these too went missing. Overall, the SUS’ investigation carried on without scandal, but conspiracy theorists seem to believe the LAPD was involved in a cover-up.