Posted 8:05 AM by Murph.

It sounds like things have stopped standing still; Kenzi is in Korea and, apparently, her trial will be done within 60 days. (Assuming she goes to trial; if she doesn't, she'll be free much sooner.)

Hello Everybody (a surprised note from Kenzi's mother)-

My phone ran at 7:15 this morning. The vice-principals from my school
were on the line, they were going to pick me up because someone from the
American Embassy in Korea was going to call back in half an hour.

Kenzi is in Korea! She arrived at about 7 in the evening in Seoul, on
Friday. She will be at the original Police Station (at which she was
first taken in March 2001) for 48 hours and then will be put in to a
holding cell with the Federal Prosecutors for a 10 day period. During
this time, they will look at all of the evidence and decide if there is a
case for them to go to trial. If they can not make a decision within 10
days they can ask for one continuance. If they decide to go to trial the
date will be set immediately, and everything is required to be over in 60
days.

I was most surprised to hear this, as when I origianlly did research on
the Korean system, it said it could take 5 years for her to even get into
a courtroom.

WOW!! This could all be over in 10 days!!! What I am asking everyone to
pray for is that justice will be served as quickly as it can be. I do not
want to get hopes up too high, but Kenzi could be coming home so soon!

I am leaving for Korea tomorrow morning so that I can spend Christmas
with her! I can not believe the convenience for all this to happen over
my Christmas break...I don't even have to miss one day of school. I wish
to thank all the people who came to work on Saturday to help me get my
passport and ticket organized. Please send a special prayer their way,
too. I owe them a lot!

These next 10 days are most important, and I am asking for all your
heartfelt prays!

May you all have a Blessed Christmas!

Heath Bozonie

The Korea News has a short blurb on Kenzi's arrival in Korea. I find interesting the claim that she "fled to the U.S. while being questioned by local police". It seems to me that they had her in custody for questioning for a week and then let her go, and she went home. Hardly fleeing.

Posted 9:08 PM by Murph.

I apologize once again for the lapse in updating; I've been suffering from a lack of information. However, I just received a letter from Heath Bozonie:

Hello Everyone-

It has been awhile since my last letter to you. And unfortunately I have little to report. The 30-day time limit for an appeal is over. Kenzi could be traveling to Korea at any time. I have not received word one way or the other. But I will tell you as soon as I know.

There is good news to tell, though! At our school, we have many Korean missionaries and they are willing to help my try to find a Korean interpreter. Also, a friend of a friend (or a new friend to me) teaches in Seoul now, and she has given me information to secure a job there for next year.

We really do appreciate all of your prayers. We still need your help though, more so now than ever!

We need a good appointed lawyer. The family discussed it and we were so happy with our court appointed lawyer in the US, and we have no idea about the laws or lawyers in Korea, so we feel that we should use theirs. Being this is the very first extradition of a US citizen to Korea, we should get the very best, right?

We need judges who will listen to the evidence and not be swayed by the FBI confession.

We need a law in the US to protect others from the FBI confession methods.

We need the media to get this case into the public eye so that these other things will happen.

There must be a reason why this is happening. We need to use this situation for the betterment of all, or it will just be a waste of Kenzi's youth.

Thank you again and again and again for your support! I often get letters from people who "just found out" and they say that after looking at the evidence, they can not understand why this is happening. I thank YOU for spreading the word and getting Kenzi on more and more prayer lists. THIS is what will work!

Most sincerely, Heath Bozonie (Kenzi's Mom)

News searches aren't revealing any new articles since the extradition hearing...

Posted 7:45 AM by Murph.

It looks like the "can be" decision will not be appealed:

Hello Everyone (a sad note from Kenzi's mother)

KENZI IS GOING TO KOREA to stand trial if Secretary of State Colin Powell signs the form. She is being held 30 days to allow her lawyer to contest the hearing results, but that would be a waste of time as the judge really had no other option under the guidelines of the extradition. Really, the hearing was mainly to get the information of the way the interrogation/interview was conducted into the public record so that it will go with her to Korea. That mission was accomplished.

Kenzi thinks this may even be the best course of events. She so wants to teach children and travel, and if it just gets dismissed (rather than her being proven innocent), then she may never be allowed to follow either dream. I just hope she is as lucky with her lawyer and the judges in Korea as she was in West Virginia.

I am reminding everyone to please write to all of your Congress People to get a law into effect that "No confessions be admitted into a court without the interview/interrogation being recorded." This whole business would not have happened to Kenzi if this kind of law were on the books now. Her interview/interrogation was not officially recorded in anyway (not even notes were taken by the FBI agents), and under illegal methods. But there is no written proof (maybe why no notes were taken, ha?).

This is not the end of the road, I am sorry to say. But if we can make something good come of this, protect someone else from having to live throught this senseless chaos, then Kenzi and her family will feel as if this was worthwhile, that there was a purpose.

Again I say, thank you for your support and notes. I do copy everything sent to me and mail it off to Kenzi. I just sent a big envelope off the other day filled with the kindest words.

Please keep praying for us!! Heath Bozonie

Just as an added bonus, so that you can all write to your Congresspeople, you can find your Senators listed by state, most of whom have webpages with e-mail addresses. The equivalent page for the House seems to be down at the moment, but you might have better luck. There's also a page for House members alphabetically, if the by-state listing doesn't work.

Posted 11:59 AM by Murph.

I apologize for the lapse in posting; I was out of town and away from a computer. In the meantime, Judge Taylor has decided that Kenzi can be extradited. Note that "can be" is different than "will be"; Kenzi can appeal the "can be" decision, all the way up to the Supreme Court, and, once "can be" is finalized, the question of "will be" is ultimately decided by Secretary of State Colin Powell. All that the extradition decision by the court means is that, if the trial were to be held in the US, there would be sufficient evidence to warrant a trial, and, therefore, there is sufficient evidence that the Korean government is justified in asking for a trial.

The Huntington Herald-Dispatch has the most detailed article. Another Herald-Dispatch article details the Korean justice system. The Associated Press mention of the verdict appears in several places as well.

Posted 6:58 AM by Murph.

An e-mail update:

Hello Everyone (a message from Kenzi's mother)

The judge is very busy (he is the only Federal judge here at the moment) and so the judging may wait until Friday. I need to wait just in case she gets out, as she has no money and no ID. But being as the extradition only needs a "maybe could have" for her to go, she probably will go.

The reason they wanted the hearing, as they did, is so the evidence could be on public record and the Korean lawyer would get it.

I was so hoping this would be over, but I think it just beginning as new stage. Thank you for all your support and I may need to ask for it again.

Sincerely, Heath Bozonie (Kenzi's mom)

Posted 12:51 PM by Murph.

Tomorrow is supposed to be the day when Magistrate Taylor's verdict is announced; in the meantime, Kenzi's mother has e-mailed around a summary of the case and trial:

Hello Everyone- (quite a long letter from Kenzi's mother)

This will be so much more than a note. I want to give a brief idea of all that has befallen Kenzi since the initial incident on 18 March 2001.

There are three main events, which took two to three days each to complete. They are (1) the Seoul weekend (16-18 March 2001), (2) the "interview" (4-6 February 2002) and (3) the hearing (2-3 October 2002). I am compiling the information I received in Seoul when I went to be with Kenzi after she called to tell me, and at the hearing just last week.


(1) The Seoul Weekend

Kenzi went to South Korea as an international student two weeks before the Seoul weekend. At dinner on Thursday night the students discussed going to Seoul and it was decided that anyone who wished to go was to be packed and ready in time to take the train on Friday. Seven students showed up. Kenzi brought one pair of walking boots and two pair of pants. The train takes about 5 hours (I think), they stopped at the Tourist Information Desk upon arriving in Seoul and the person there suggested their hotel. They played cards that evening. On Saturday they went sightseeing all day and then went to a St. Patrick's Day party in the evening. The student! s left in pairs from about 1-3 in the morning. Kenzi and Jamie were the last of the group to leave. Kenzi helped Jamie walk back to the hotel, and when in Jamie's room helped with the water temperature for her shower and Kenzi went to her room. She started to crawl into bed and then thought of checking on Jamie. She went back down the hallway, knocked on the door, entered to listen, heard the shower and left. She slept in the pants and shirt she had worn to the party.

At about 7-8 in the morning, there was a frantic knock on the door. The person who had roomed with Jamie was crying and calling that there was someone on her floor. Kenzi ran to see and found a body, covered with a black jacket, on the floor with blood all over. The students went to the hotel owner to call the police, but the police would not come. The university was called and the American Embassy (but they refused to help, too) and finally some students went to the police station for help. The students were herded into a room to await the detectives.

Detectives arrived, the students were questioned for about an hour, Kenzi identified the body using a small tattoo on Jamie's shoulder, and the three students who were nearest to the scene were taken off for questioning at police headquarters. Kenzi was put into a small isolation room for four hours before she was questioned for 15 hours that first day. She was then questioned for 12 hours the second day and 9 hours the third.

Witnesses stated that the voices of two men were heard in the room very early in the morning, at the same time that banging and moaning was heard. A man was seen leaving the room with blood on his pants. A bloody footprint was on the floor of the room. No blood was found on Kenzi's shoes, pants or shirt, nor were they wet.

The Korean Police Chief was very impressed with the students for their helpfulness during the interrogation, meet with them personally, served them tea, gave them back their passports and wished them well in their futures.


(2) This Interview

Three agents were involved in the "interview," not one of them was from the local FBI office.

(1) CID (Military Investigation) Sgt. Mansfield Three days after the case, we went away to a military school for 4 months. Upon his return, CID gave him the murder file and told him to find a criminal. He found some discrepancies in Kenzi's testimony: a) did she really see Vince when they left the bar, b) who turned on the bathroom light, c) who turned on which temperature of water for the shower, d) did she enter the room when she returned or just knock on the outside door, e) did she return at all (another student did not remember her getting up, but only remembered the final time she laid down), and f) how dressed Jamie was when Kenzi left the room.

(2) FBI Agent DeVittis He testified in court that he was not an interrogator at all, but was a polygrapher. However, the "window of opportunity" shut the first second he say her, because she had brought a friend with her. And even on the second day, when she came alone, that "window of opportunity stayed shut," but with all the windows closed, and even with him having no reason to be there, he stayed for the entire three days and asked most of the questions on days 2 and 3.

(3) FBI Agent Syung said and did little, but he did stand behind her fairly often.

Day One: The agents met and then called Kenzi to see if she would be willing to help them fill in some gaps. She readily agreed and went to the hotel where the agents were staying. They said the conference room was busy, and asked if she would mind going to a regular room. Sgt. Mansfield did most of the talking, and he spent the first evening (6 hours) asking general questions about how she was, how she was sleeping, and building rapport. When she was leaving, she was asked to write down exactly what she remembered, and to bring it with her the next day.

Day Two: She brought her statement and there were a few differences in the one she had given the year before in Korea. She had remembered that she had entered the room and listened at the bathroom door, heard the shower running, and left.

Agent DeVittis did most of the talking this day (remember he was not an interrogator, but a polygrapher). He brought up some discrepancies in the two statements and asked her to explain the differences. An example is: Kenzi said she saw Vince when she left the bar, and that she waved and then walked home. They said that that was not true, because Vince said he did not see her. This type of questioning went on for hours. She would make a statement and they would say it was not true. She could not answer all their questions and at one point, she stood up and said, "You're saying I killed Jamie? What evidence do you have?" She left the room for a few minutes and when she returned she asked, "Do I need a lawyer?" They assured her that she did not need a lawyer and said, "If you get a lawyer, we could not say that you cooperated fully." They said they just wanted new ideas to help them solve the crime. She then said, "If I did this think, I don't recall."

Remember that Kenzi had always wanted to find the murderer! She is very creative, imaginative and right-brained. As a family, we try to see all sides of an argument and can come up with three alternatives for any problem. She relaxes by using yoga and deep breathing. She wanted to know the truth.

They used all this against her and she entered a dream world. They would give her a situation, she would see a gray cloud, then it would thin and she would see a picture and describe it to them. By the end, she had no idea which were the real memories and which were from the dream-pictures.

The FBI agents did not keep notes, nor did they record any of this interview. Sgt. Mansfield did take some notes of his own while he was sitting behind them, but they were sketchy.

Day Three: They wrote up a version of the confession. She signed where she was told to sign. They fingerprinted and photographed her, gave her a candy bar and sent her home.


(3) The Hearing

Kenzi's lawyer, Mr. Weis, needed to apply a number of times for Discovery, and in the end only got about a quarter of the information the Prosecutors had. Once Sgt. Mansfield referred to they're being many lab reports, and Mr. Weis had only received one.


Professor Ofshe testified for the Defense. He is a sociologist who specializes in false memory syndrome and rational decision making to a false confession. (His testimony was really very interesting). He explained why a person would confess to a crime they knew they did not commit, and how an interrogator could manipulate a person into having false memories so they thought they had done the crime.

There are three parts to any confession: (1) the most dramatic Pre-Admission, (2) the break down, or Admission, and (3) the longest, least dramatic, but most important Post- Admission.

During Pre-Admission, the person is judging whether they can get through this all right without loosing too much of their life. Once they think that there is no escape; that there is too much evidence that proves them guilty, the person will confess. During this time, Kenzi was told that nothing would happen to her, that other known criminals were never extradited and that the sentences were very light anyway. Her statements of what she knew to have happened were continually challenged and "evidence" was given to prove that her memory was wrong and then a "correct" memory was suggested to her. Kenzi was more susceptible to this because of her ability to relax and her true desire to know the truth. ! Kenzi started to belief she was guilty.

The Post-Admission is the most important because that is where the witness testimony and the physical evidence are matched to the confession. In Kenzi's case, this never happened. Instead, the agents manipulated the evidence to fit their scenario, keeping some and discarding the rest. An example is the voices and noises. The noises were kept but the male voices were not.


The Confession: The main idea of the confession is that Jamie was the sexual aggressor, and when Kenzi was trying to fend her off, she accidentally hurt her. Then Jamie looked so uncomfortable crumpled in the bathtub, Kenzi moved her all over the place, dropping her, banging her head into walls, and dragged her into the middle of the sleeping area. Kenzi then got upset that Jamie was looking at her, so she smashed her face in and left a perfect impression of a bloody footprint behind.

The most amazing thing about this confession, is that after doing all this to the body, Kenzi got no blood on any of her clothes or shoes, left no DNA evidence on Jamie, nor was any DNA evidence from Jamie on Kenzi, and according to the records not one long blonde hair was left behind (even though it was not tied up).


We are still awaiting the judgment. I am confident that it will be clear that Kenzi should be released; that the extradition should be cancelled and that this must stop!!

I am going to start a letter writing campaign to Congress for a law that "NO confession can be admissible into any court record unless the interview/interrogation was recorded (audio or video)." There is nothing wrong with an interrogation as long as it does not become a crime in itself. If you wish, please send this to everyone on your mailing list and encourage them to pass it along. Please take the time to email all of your Congress Representatives. As a people, we must work toward "and justice for all."



Most Sincerely, Heath Bozonie

(In the interest of full disclosure, this doesn't look exactly as it did when I received it. After cutting and pasting from e-mail, I cleaned up some of the spacing and smart-quotes that a Microsoft mail reader puts into documents which Pine can't read. If anyone finds this offensive, I can post the direct cut-and-paste.)

Posted 9:53 AM by Murph.

Today's round-up of newspaper articles on Kenzi's extradition hearing:

• PittsburghLIVE.com
  
• Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
  

The Post-Gazette includes:

At the conclusion of yesterday's hearing, Magistrate Judge Maurice Taylor said he would rule by next Wednesday on whether to sign the extradition order.

Taylor must decide three questions of law: Whether an extradition treaty exists between the United States and South Korea; whether the alleged crime is covered by that treaty; and whether there is probable cause that the defendant committed the crime.

Posted 7:09 AM by Murph.

Kenzi's trial started yesterday, and it seems both my blogs have seen a lot of traffic due to it. Here's an update from Kenzi's mother, received this morning:

Dear Everyone (a note form Kenzi's mother)-

We finished one day of hearing, but it will be two more days for sure. One more day for testimony and the other for the verdict.

This is most interesting!! We are not done, and I am not 100% sure, but it sounds as if Kenzi thought they were asking for her help to figure things out (which the FBI had done before), she gave possible solutions that happened to match the facts and they took it as her confessing. She thought at one time they thought she had done it and asked if she needed to get a lawyer, and they just said she was helping them with ideas.

Isn't this a scary world??

Her lawyer is being just great! I am so impressed with his skill and preparedness. Kenzi is being looked after well. The judge is making sure that everything is fair and that all is thoroughly being understood. I am not afraid. Please keep us in your prayers and lift Kenzi tomorrow as she finishes her testimony.

Love to you all, Heath Bozonie

Also, newspaper articles on the first day of the hearing are available from:

• PittsburghLIVE.com
  
• Post-Gazette
  
• Huntington's Herald-Dispatch
  

Posted 7:19 AM by Murph.

An update from Kenzi's mother (don't think I'd forgotten about you all; I'm posting info as fast as I get it):

Hello Everyone - (an update from Kenzi's mother)

This may be the final week of jail for Kenzi!! Her hearing will be on 2
October, starting at 9:30 Eastern time. This hearing is very promising!
Her lawyer has gone the full mile for her and the judge is willing to
listen. Kenzi is indeed lucky in these two facts!

I have thought long and hard about what I wanted to ask everyone to pray
for. I would like the judge to be relaxed and happy for Wednesday so that
he can give his full attention to the case. I would like her lawyer and
the witnesses to be confident and convincing. I would like as many of
Kenzi's faithful friends as posible be able to attend the hearing. I
would like my trip from Thailand to be relaxing and safe. I would like
safe travel for the entire family so that we can be together in peace and
with hope. I would like peace be given to Kenzi so that she can withstand
this last, long week. I want justice to be served!! I know this seems
like quite the long list, but they all go hand in hand.

I know many of you are faithful prayers. I have felt the difference since
we started this prayer list. I have never felt scared or hopeless during
this entire time. Wonderful and unusual things have happened, and I think
I have all of you to thank for that. Kenzi has felt it too. Kenzi told me
at the beginning, in February, that no matter what, she would make her
life worthwhile. She has keep the faith and worked to help others.

I hope that my next message to you will be that she is free. In Love,
Heath Bozonie

Posted 10:07 AM by Murph.

The latest news from PittsburghLIVE.com says that Kenzi's extradition hearing has been moved back to October 2nd.

The last paragraph states that Kenzi's lawyer is soliciting Richard Ofshe to testify on Kenzi's alleged confession. Ofshe is a sociologist from Berkeley whose work includes the creation of false memories and the occurrance of false confessions during interrogation.

Posted 8:59 AM by Murph.

(just received via e-mail:)

Dear Sir:

I am Jamie Penich's mother.
I have just read your web page. I would like to clarify one point. You
stated that we (Jamies family) decry Kenzis confession as false. [Stars
and Stripes, March 5, 2002] As you know, statements that are printed by
or reported by the media are often misreported and restated for the
benefit of the news media reporting them.
The only part of Kenzis confession that we absolutely and under no
circumstances believe, is Kenzis statement about Jamie undressing
herself and making sexual advances toward Kenzi.
Please make this adjustment to your web page.

Patricia Penich

All right, a clarification to my previous statements. The family of Jamie Penich believes that Kenzi Snider killed their daughter. They accept at face value the portion of Kenzi's alleged confession which states that she killed Penich, but reject the portion which states why and how, as well as rejecting material evidence to the contrary.

Thank you for your letter. I will repeat to you what Jeff Gratz, Jamie's former fiance, said to me: "The truth shall set you free." I sincerely hope that the truth in this case emerges, and that it will set Kenzi free from imprisonment, set you, the family, free from your hatred towards her, and take freedom only from the person actually guilty for Jamie's murder. Your loss is truly tragic and your grief completely understandable, yet I urge you to recall that Kenzi has not been found guilty, and that there seems to be much evidence towards her innocence. If the truth emerges, and I am wrong, I will accept it. I can only hope you'll do as much.

Posted 5:41 AM by Murph.

(sent from Kenzi's mother:)

We have news concerning Kenzi's hearing. Her lawyer just sent an e-mail to me: Magistrate Judge Taylor has postponed Kenzi's extradition hearing. We do not have a new date. I must give the government a report from Prof. Ofshe by August 12. On August 20, we are having a conference call to set a date. He will hear Prof. Ofshe's testimony. Now there may be some hope.

I hope the end result will justify the time Kenzi sits in jail waiting. I will send out another update after 20 August, when I know when the new hearing date is.

My guess is Kenzi will be feeling pretty bad about this news. If you would like, please send a note or a card to keep her spirits up. Keep praying that all will fall neatly in line and she will be coming home soon.

Thank you for all your support! Heath Bozonie (Kenzi's mom)

Posted 6:29 AM by Murph.

(sent from Kenzi's mother:)

Kenzi was very excited and happy on her birthday. She got all kinds of cards from people she hadn't heard from for a long time, her friends and well-wishes. One of the guards sang "Happy Birthday" and she even got to see the stars! Thank you everyone for helping make this happen. I think she will remember everyone's kindness and support for the rest of her life. She told me she thinks she "is one of the luckiest people in the world."

We have very good news about Kenzi's hearing, too: We have hired Prof. Richard Ofshe at U.C. Berkeley to testify about the means used to get the confession. He just underwent hip surgery and isn't supposed to travel until August 12. For that reason, I have asked that the hearing be postponed. I will let you know if the date is changed.

One of the key factors used to determine the accuracy of any confession is the way in which it fits with or is contradicted by other facts. It may mean a few more days on this end of the hearing, but she will be free and proven innocent forever!

Pray with all your might! Good things are happening! Kenzi has started a Bible Group, and is still helping with the GED program (and she has sent home a funny little pamphlet about "Jail Survival Skills"). Her faith is stronger than ever.

Thank you all so very much! Heath Bozonie (Kenzi's mom)

Posted 8:51 AM by Murph.

I'm amazed at the amount of traffic this site has received in the past week. For months, it has had no visitors whatsoever, but I've had more than 50 in the last week. If you're reading this, and know Kenzi (or Jamie, for that matter), and/or have information or opinions or anything at all, let me know: murphyr@engin.umich.edu

In the meantime, an article from the Pitt News is saying that the FBI has released Kenzi's confession. Unfortunately, the confession itself is not available anywhere that Google or I can get to. While I suspect the Pitt of being biased (it's not possible to not be biased, and college newpapers tend to be understandably biased in favor of their students), they do a remarkably good job of acknowledging that there are people who disagree with the charges, and even link to Kenzi's family's site.

Finally, July 8 is Kenzi's birthday. She'll be in jail from now until then and beyond, awaiting her extradition hearing. If you want to send her a card, write me and I'll give you an address.

Posted 5:41 PM by Murph.

New information!

(sent along from Kenzi's mother):

Dear Ms. Bozonie,

Yesterday morning Magistrate Judge Taylor ordered the United States
to turn over any information gathered by U.S. officials (here or in
Korea) which rebutted the probable cause showing they intend to make at
the hearing. ("Brady" material). The U.S. said that they would need
more time to thoroughly check with U.S. officials in Korea to be sure
they fully complied with the order. As a result, the hearing has been
postponed until July 30, 2002 at 9:30 a.m.

Sincerely yours, Edward H. Weis, Assistant Federal Public Defender

This is a start at justice!! The judge did not have to allow this. Keep
those prayers and wishes and letters flowing. I also wish to send a
letter I wrote to the millitary editorial page:

Dear Editor-

My husband had a Top Secret security clearance with the government for 30
years. As a member of the Air Force for 15 years, the family was
stationed in England (3 years), Japan (2 1/3 years), Italy (5 years), and
Fort Meade, MD (3 years). He then joined the State Department Foreign
Service and the family was posted in Belgium (2 years), Zaire (now the
Dem Rep of Congo) (2 years), he went on a remote to Haiti (3 years),
Bangladesh (2 years), and then he was at the Regional Office in Florida.

Last year my daughter was an international student in South Korea and
while on a sightseeing tour another student was murdered. This spring my
daughter was picked up and put into Federal Jail and is now awaiting
extradition to South Korea to stand trial.

During the hearing for bail, her petition was denied because the Federal
Court system found her a threat because she was an ITINERANT VAGRANT.
Never mind that the evidence does not point to her; never mind that she
is an honors student, an community volunteer, and was an exemplary
employee at a home for troubled youth; never mind that she wanted to
permanently settle in the state she was being held; never mind that the
prosecuting attorney implied the "confession" was a joke..

Does this scare only me? Will your children be more likely to be victims
of the court system simply because they traveled? You may wish to think
about this.

Heath Bozonie

Looks like I may be making a trip to West Va. in the end of July to observe a hearing, as strange as it may be to see a friend for the first time in three years (and the second time ever) in court.

It's relieving that the prosecution has been ordered to turn over any possibly conflicting evidence. It's hard to organize a defense when you have nothing with which to defend, and barely any knowledge of what you're defending against. I'm not sure what the part about the confession being a joke means. Is this along the lines of telling customs officials, "that's not *really* confectioner's sugar, tee hee"?

Posted 8:22 AM by Murph.

Notice that it's been a month since anything was last posted here. Not that this means all is okay, merely that I'm suffering from a lack of information. However, scouring Google for news stories today revealed nothing recent, but did have an article I'd missed before from the Herald-Dispatch which discusses the criminal justice system in Korea.

Posted 6:58 PM by Murph.

(sent along from Kenzi's mother):

Ms. Bozonie:
I have just received a formal notice that Korea has filed an
extradition request. I do not have a copy of the full request - only a
notice that it has been filed. I was promised a copy of the full packet
"shortly."
Edward H. Weis
Assistant Federal Public Defender

It sounds as though Kenzi's lawyer not only does not have a copy of her confession (i.e. the only "evidence" presented against her by American authorities), but also does not have access to the extradition request (which, presumably, would contain the evidence presented by Korean authorities). Hopefully the meaning he intends by the quotation marks ("shortly") is not as bleak as the meaning I assign to such quotation marks.

Posted 1:23 PM by Murph.

Sounds as if there's been an extradition request made. This is not a good thing; the hope was that Korea would not act within the allotted 60 days, and lose their chance.

Date: Thu, 25 Apr 2002 18:46:36 +0000
From: *omitted*
To: *murphyr@engin.umich.edu, among others*
Subject: Kenzi Update

Dear Everyone-

Kenzi's first 60 days is coming to a close. She will be released on Monday
or Tuesday, but she is not really free. The law says one can not be held
more than 60 days without being charged. She could be picked up again at
any time, once the US State Department is finsihed with processing and/or
translating the extradition request. She must have an extradition hearing,
which will decide whether the US thinks that South Korea's request is valid.
We do not yet have a hearing date set. I will continue to keep you
posted.

Keep those prayers coming!! Thank you, Heath Bozonie (Kenzi's mom)

Posted 7:36 PM by Murph.

Saw a production of Arthur Miller's play The Crucible last night:

HALE: Mister, I have myself examined Tituba, Sarah Good, and numerous others that have confessed in dealing with the Devil. They have confessed it.

PROCTOR: And why not, if they must hang for denyin' it? There are them that will swear to anything before they'll hang; have you never thought of that?

And yes, this *is* the blog I meant to post this too. Think on it.

Posted 12:29 PM by Murph.

It was pointed out to me that the link I have to her family's site, below, was broken. I've fixed it, but in fixing it put it back to a url which used to be broken (when the one I had worked). The currently working url is:

http://www.geocities.com/justice4kenzi/

But if you find that not to work, try:

http://www.geocities.com/justice4kenzi/justice.swf

Posted 7:02 PM by Murph.

The unfortunate thing about being a few hundred miles away is that news travels slowly, when it's not "exciting" enough to get into the newspaper.

I did find out today that Kenzi is still being held in West Virginia and that there hasn't been any word on extradition. This is good, as apparently South Korea only has 60 days to request extradition. If they don't do it in about the next 2 weeks, then there's no chance of Kenzi being sent to South Korea. As stated already, Kenzi's ability to get a decent translator in South Korea has been seen to be limited, making defense more difficult.

I also have an address with which to send her letters. If you want to write her, e-mail me and ask for her address. I'd post it, but I'm paranoid, and this way you have to at least fake being supportive of her in order to get it.

Posted 10:11 AM by Murph.

E-mail correspondence from Jeff Gratz, regarding both this site and Kenzi's family's site:

to whom it may concern...

I am jamie penich's former fiance... my contact with Kenzi was a result
of trying to find answers in this case. She was more than happy to oblige
and we kept each other up to date on what was going on... We were both
looking for answers. I've found my answers (as have Jamie's family).

As far as my quotes that were pulled from emails that I had sent to Kenzi
which appear on her website, the quotes were taken out of context of the
emails and out of context with the phone calls that surrounded them. At
no point did I state any soldiers were set free or any other information
AS FACT. I was merely, and I stated this to her on several occasions,
passing along what I had heard. This came from several sources, some
newspapers, some conversations with the family, some with people
investigating the case. I claim no responsiblity for the comments other
than, as I stated before, "passing along second hand info."

Another point I must take issue with is the statement on the website that
"the family dismisses the confession as untrue". No, I believe the
confession, as do the family. We believe that is what Kenzi said. Do I
agree with the notion that Jamie made passes at Kenzi? No. And even if
she did, so what? It's a moot point. An innocent person is dead. Kenzi's
confession will be made public to the defense attorney when the time is
appropriate and within the guidelines of the law... no law is being
broken by not showing them at this point.

I also take exception to the fact that my name was used on the website. I
do not agree with your cause, I do not support it... and furthermore... I
do not wish my name to be associated with it. Period. You can take me
off your list if you wish... or don't... I will be keeping an eye on the
website as well as the weblog to see whatever else is going on... and I
will be alerting the proper authorities of the sites existance so they
can too.

Please don't take my email as hostile. I hold no hostility to anyone on
this list. Noone here has done anything wrong. I am upset that my name is
being tossed around on the site in a way that doesn't really mean squat
in the long run, all it does is draw attention away from the matter at
hand. Who CARES what I said someone told me about the case? I don't mean
anything here... the victim matters, the authorities matter and now Kenzi
matters because she made a confession. The media, the websites, the
articles, all that stuff, doesn't mean a THING at this point. Justice
will be served however it needs to be served.

the truth shall set you free

jeff gretz

As I responded to Mr. Gretz, that "the truth shall set you free" is what I am sincerely hoping for. The death of Jamie Penich was horrific, and I have nothing but sympathy and sorrow for those around her. My interest is not, as Mr. Gretz seems to imply, to block the progress of justice. I am interested, as is he, that justice be served properly. However, I believe strongly that actual justice will not involve finding Kenzi Snider guilty, and hope that the concept of "innocent until proven guilty" is preserved.

The fact that the only evidence against Kenzi is a confession, which was allegedly extracted during questioning by FBI agents which did not occur in the presence of a lawyer; the fact that this confession has not been made available to the court file or to her defense; and the idea of her being extradited to Korea, where Anneloes Verwyk, the roommate of Jamie Penich, has noted that Kenzi could not get a reliable translator while being questioned by Korean officials, immediately after the murder, all lead to the conclusion that the course of justice is not being carried out as it should be. Whether Kenzi Snider is innocent or guilty, a thorough and open investigation will only assist in reaching an accurate verdict.

As for the Penich family's disbelief of Kenzi's "confession", I do not wish to say that they doubt the idea that she confessed, or that they doubt she is guilty. I merely wish to point out the fact that they accept her guilt while rejecting the explanation of the night's events that she has supposedly confessed to.

I refer to an article from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette from March 2, 2002:

That account was immediately dismissed by relatives of Penich, who was engaged to be married at the time of her death.

"There's no possible way that Jamie would ever do anything like that," said Penish's uncle, Bill Sherback, who spoke for the girl's parents at their home in Derry, Westmoreland County. "We feel Kenzi's just trying to cover her tracks any way she can and grasp at straws."

Penich's family can't believe she would have made sexual advances on Kenzi. Kenzi's friends can't believe she would assault another person. Both groups may be right, or both may be wrong. Neither can prove their point merely by insisting that it is so. Instead, we must both push for justice to be served.

I urge you, Mr. Gretz, to join me in asking for true justice, whether or not Kenzi is actually guilty.

Posted 1:40 PM by Murph.

Some people to write to:

Senator Mark Dayton (US Senator from Minnesota, where Kenzi's family lives):
SR-346, Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, District of Columbia 20510
Phone: (202) 224-3244
Fax: (202) 228-2186
E-mail: http://dayton.senate.gov/webform.html

Senator Paul Wellstone (US Senator from MN):
136 Hart Senate Office Bldg.
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: 202 224-5641
Fax: 202 224-8438
E-mail: http://wellstone.senate.gov/webform.html

Senator Robert Byrd (US Senator from West Virginia, where Kenzi lives and goes to school):
311 Hart Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: 202-224-3954
Fax: 304-343-7144
E-mail: senator_byrd@byrd.senate.gov

Senator John Rockefeller IV (US Senator from WV):
531 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: (202) 224-6472
Fax: (202) 224-7665
E-mail: senator@rockefeller.senate.gov

Find your Senator

Posted 12:57 PM by Murph.

I remember a conversation from a few years ago in which Kenzi and I were discussing the commonness of names. A web search for "Richard Murphy" would turn up tens of thousands of hits, while a search for "Kenzi Snider" turned up none.

I wish it had stayed that way. When she first got home from Korea after the murder, there were a few hits in which her name was mentioned as a friend of Jamie Penich's. A web search this afternoon turns up 187, all of which look to be related to this case.

Stars and Stripes, May 24, 2001, contains the case as it stood a year ago, with the South Korean and American authorities looking for a male suspect, specifically invetigating US servicemen. The same source, cached by Google, March 5, 2002, has a new story, in which Kenzi has been accused, though apparently there exists no evidence except a confession by Kenzi--which Jamie Penich's own family decries as false.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 12, 2002, describes the trial at which Kenzi was denied bail, noting that her confession has neither been shown to her defense attorney nor attached to the public record of the trial.

Meanwhile, a story by Yahoo News/Reuters, March 2, 2002, demonstrates the non-clarity of the case. They seem to play up the story of a sexual advance, yet the account of who did what is completely opposite what the other sources say.

Posted 11:58 AM by Murph.

Kenzi's brother has also set up a website about Kenzi's case.

Posted 11:52 AM by Murph.

Kenzi Snider, a student at Marshall University in West Virginia and a friend of mine, has been arrested for the murder of Jamie Penich, which occurred while both were exchange students in South Korea. Kenzi has been denied bail and is facing extradition charges, and Penich's family has expressed a desire to see her executed. I, and everyone who has ever known Kenzi, find this deeply disturbing.

I have created this weblog on which to post information about the case; if you are a friend of Kenzi's and wish to add something to the site, either send it to me or ask me for access: murphyr@engin.umich.edu