DA drops charges against ex-CHP officer Walter Wells, last defendant in murder plot
The longest criminal case in Stanislaus County’s recent history ended Thursday when prosecutors dropped the last charge, only a week after insisting they intended to prosecute the remaining defendant in a murder investigation that consumed four years of court hearings and at one point targeted nine people.
District Attorney Birgit Fladager’s office filed a motion to dismiss charges against former California Highway Patrol officer Walter Wells in the “interest of justice.”
“There has been no justice whatsoever in this entire case for seven years,” said Robert Forkner, Wells’ attorney. “All this case accomplished was to ruin people’s lives.”
Wells was one of nine people charged in 2015 in connection with the 2012 disappearance and death of Korey Kauffman. Only one person was convicted as part of a plea deal in exchange for his testimony against the other defendants.
The remaining defendants, including prominent Modesto defense attorney Frank Carson, were either acquitted by a jury or cleared of wrongdoing.
“You arrest a CHP officer, throw him in jail for 16 months with murder charges, and then all of a sudden realize Walter isn’t part of any murder and let him out ... this is criminal misconduct on the part of the prosecution,” Forkner said.
Wells was originally charged with murder and remained jailed in lieu of $10 million bail for 16 months until the District Attorney’s Office decided not to pursue the murder charge against him, only the charges of obstructing justice and acting as an accessory.
The remaining defendants charged with murder — Carson and brothers Baljit Athwal and Daljit Atwal — were acquitted after a 14-month jury trial. However, ,the District Attorney’s office continued to pursue the charges against Wells and prosecutor Marlisa Ferreira fought two motions by Forkner to dismiss the case.
Forkner said he intended to file a third motion Friday, this time arguing criminal misconduct on the part of the prosecution and investigators, but then learned of the motion by the DA.
Birgit Fladager would not say what prompted the about-face.
Shortly after The Bee inquired with her Friday, a post was made on her Office’s Facebook page stating, “Due to ongoing litigation we cannot comment further at this time.”
Multiple civil lawsuits have been filed by the former defendants against the District Attorney’s Office and involved law enforcement agencies alleging false arrest and malicious prosecution, including one filed by Carson this week.
Forkner said he had evidence to present and witnesses lined up to testify at a Jan. 10 hearing to support his claim of criminal misconduct by the district attorney’s office and investigators. He said that information will now be handed over to attorneys handling the civil cases.
Wells was one of three CHP officers charged in the case to subsequently lose his job. One of them, Eduardo Quintanar, after being exonerated, was ordered back on to the force by a state administrative body.
Forkner said Wells also plans to fight to get his career back.
The defense for the accused repeatedly argued that this was a vindictive prosecution intent on ruining Carson’s career.
Prosecutors alleged that Kauffman was killed after he was caught on Carson’s property trying to steal irrigation pipes.
Kauffman, 26, of Turlock, went missing in 2012; his body was found more than a year later in a remote area of the Stanislaus National Forest in Mariposa County.
This story was originally published December 27, 2019 at 3:15 PM.
