Your ‘Making a Murderer’ Cheat Sheet

Several Netflix shows have been a hit with viewers but few have commanded attention as much as the service’s new true crime series, Making a Murderer. FIlmed over the course of 10 years, the 10-part series re-examines the trial and subsequent conviction of Steven Avery. After being wrongly accused of sexual assault and serving 18 years in prison, the newly freed Avery is soon put on trial for another crime — murder.

The series explores the case from Avery’s point of view, proposing the theory that evidence was planted on Avery by the police. It’s shocking, often hard to watch, and will most likely make you question your own local legal system. It’s also probably what everyone in your office streamed over the holiday break. Whether you’ve watched the series in its entirety and want a two-minute catch up or if you just want to know what your coworkers are talking about, we’re here to help. Consider this your Making a Murderer cheat sheet, outlining who you need to know, why you need to know them, and a brief timeline of events.

This by no means supplements the whole series. It’s a documentary that is as amazing as it is chilling. However, if you’ve binged the series too quickly to remember everyone you should have remembered, this list is for you.

Who did what again?

Penny Ann Beernsten: Beernsten was beaten and raped while running along the Michigan lake shoreline in 1985. She identified Steven Avery as her assailant, and the documentary series hints that this misidentification came largely by the pressuring of the police force. According to footage on the documentary, Avery holds little to no ill will toward Beernsten because of the misidentification.

Steven Avery: Being the protagonist of the documentary, he’s the one you probably know the most about. The Wisconsin native was convicted of sexually assaulting Beernsten in 1985 and served 18 years of his sentence before DNA evidence revealed his innocence. He was released on September 11, 2003, but was charged with murder in late 2006 (not Beernsten’s; she’s still alive). Avery has proclaimed this whole time that he is innocent and that the police set him up for both crimes. He is currently serving life in prison.

District Attorney Denis Vogel: He’s the reason Avery’s evidence planting allegations don’t seem so farfetched. Years after Avery’s first sentencing, it was revealed that this Manitowoc County District Attorney knew about the real rapist.

Lt. James Lenk and Sgt. Andrew Colborn: Both of these officers are members of the Manitowoc County police department, and both were suspected of knowing about Avery’s innocence concerning the Beernsten case. Once the victim was reported missing, both officers devoted themselves to the investigation, focusing their attentions on Avery. This is especially noteworthy considering the Manitowoc County police force was not supposed to be involved in the case due to the results of the Beernsten case. What was even shadier was their behavior during the investigation. A fellow officer testified under oath that he felt the need to babysit both officers during their investigation of Avery’s house. Suprisingly or unsurprisingly based on who you believe, Lenk was also the one to find the key to the victim’s car in Avery’s room.

Teresa Halbach: The victim. Halbach was a photographer who was murdered, based on the prosecution’s argument, by Steven Avery and his nephew, Brendan Dassey. Halbach came onto the Avery property to take a picture of a car. Her ex-boyfriend reportedly saw Halbach the day before her disappearance. According to reports, her body was sexually assaulted, mutilated, and shot in the head.

Brendan Dassey: A special education high school student who was charged with Halbach’s death along with Avery. The police had several interviews with Dassey, and the defense points to those interviews as being leading. It’s difficult not to agree with them. Dassey was convicted as an adult for sexual assault, first-degree intentional homicide, and mutilation of a corpse. He will be eligible for parole in 2048.

Len Kachinsky: Dassey’s former public defender. He was thrown off the case after allowing an incarcerated Dassey to be interviewed by the police without attorney counsel present.

Ken Kratz: The district attorney who has been getting a lot of Yelp hate lately. He’s the one who secured the convictions of Avery and Dassey, but he is now no longer a prosecutor. He stepped down after a sex scandal broke involving Kratz and the ex-girlfriend of the man he was prosecuting.

Dean Strang and Jerome Buting: The two criminal lawyers hired by Avery for his defense, AKA the Internet’s new crush (Note: They’re not together). When the series is not focusing on Avery or his family, the camera is on these two as they explain where the state messed up and what (few) options Avery has moving forward.

What else do I need to know?

• Avery, his family, and to a lesser degree Avery’s defense think the state chose Avery as a target because of his family’s not-so-wonderful reputation.

• Avery has committed crimes in the past. When he was 20, Avery pleaded guilty to pouring gasoline on a cat and throwing it in a fire. He’s also been charged with assaulting his cousin and owning a firearm illegally.

• After serving 18 years in jail for a crime he didn’t commit, Avery filed a $36 million federal lawsuit against Manitowoc County, its former sheriff (Thomas Kocourek), and its former district attorney (Denis Vogel). Avery’s defense makes the claim that one of the biggest reasons the state may have wanted to falsely imprison Avery a second time is to save face and not pay up on this lawsuit.

• One of the biggest and most disputed pieces of evidence in the case is Halbach’s car key, which was found in Avery’s room days after the room’s first search. The key only contained the DNA of Avery, which gave the defense pause, and it was found is a spot that had been checked several times before by an officer who was not supposed to be investigating this case (Lt. James Lenk). Also found in the possession of the police was a sample of Avery’s blood, which had the appearance of being tampered with.

What happened when?

TIMELINE

September 11, 2003
Steven Avery is released from prison after serving 18 years for a sexual assault conviction he did not commit.

October 30, 2005
Photographer Teresa Halbach is seen by her ex-boyfriend, though he cannot testify what part of the day he saw her.

October 31, 2005, around 2:40 to 3:40
Halbach arrives at Avery’s residence to take a picture of a car on his property. Around 3:30 p.m. Brendan Dassey, Avery’s nephew, arrives home from school.

About 6 p.m.
Avery asks Dassey to come over to his house for a bonfire.

About 9:30 p.m.
Avery’s girlfriend calls him again, and they speak for about 15 minutes. According to the prosecution’s timeline, Avery and Dassey would have just finished murdering Halbach after sexually assaulting her.

November 3, 2005
Halbach’s friends and family realize she is missing and reports the disappearance to police. A large-scale search begins the next day.

November 5 – 8, 2005
Halbach’s car is found as well as bone fragments in a burn pit near Avery’s house. The bone fragments are later confirmed to be Halbach’s.

November 10, 2005
Halbach’s car key is found in Avery’s bedroom. Later only Avery’ DNA is found on the key.

November 15, 2005
Avery is charged with Halbach’s murder, to which he pleads not guilty on the 17th. He’s later charged with kidnapping, false imprisonment, and sexual assault as well (the sexual assault and kidnapping charges are later dropped.)

March 2, 2006
Dassey is charged with homicide, mutilation of a corpse, and sexual assault.

March 18, 2007
Avery is found guilty of murdering Halbach.

June 1, 2007
Avery is sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

August 2, 2007
Dassey is sentenced to life in prison and will be eligible for parole on October 31, 2048.

August 2011
Avery’s request for a new trial is denied by the state appeals court.

January 1, 2013
Court of appeals rejects Brendan’s request for a new trial.

December 18, 2015
Making a Murderer is released on Netflix

[Making A Murderer is now available to stream on Netflix]