Interviews
SCOTT BONN, PhD – Criminologist, Author
Scott Bonn, PhD.
Dr. Scott Bonn is a criminologist, professor, TV analyst, public speaker and author of the best-selling popular culture book Why We Love Serial Killers: The Curious Appeal of the World’s Most Savage Murderers.
He has provided expert commentary and analysis for a number of high-profile true crime TV shows and documentaries on A&E, Discovery Network, Oxygen, Investigation Discovery and Travel Channel.
Bonn also authored the critically acclaimed sociology book Mass Deception: Moral Panic and the U.S. War on Iraq. His fact-based crime thriller novel, Evil Guardian, was inspired by his correspondence with notorious, real-life serial killers David Berkowitz (Son of Sam) and Dennis Rader (Bind, Torture, Kill).
Bonn is an expert on criminal behavior and is highly respected for answering the puzzling question of “why the perpetrator did it” in complex murder cases. He makes the seemingly incomprehensible both understandable and highly entertaining for his audience. He examines many types of criminal activity in his Psychology Today blog titled “Wicked Deeds” that has been visited nearly 9 million times. He has more than 15,000 social media followers.
Bonn was an award-winning criminology and sociology professor at Drew University in Madison, NJ, from 2007-2017.
Prior to becoming a criminologist, Bonn was an advertising and media executive in New York, serving in the roles of Vice President, Client Marketing, at NBC TV Network, and Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing, at The BOX Music TV Network and SonicNet during the 1990’s.
Dr. Bonn holds a Ph.D. in Sociology (Criminology) and an M.S. in Criminal Justice. He resides in Las Vegas, NV, with his wife and son.
Professional Website: http://www.docbonn.com/
Dr. Bonn’s interview follows (MP3)
LAURA D’ANGELO, M.D. – Psychiatrist
Laura d’Angelo
Dr. Laura d’Angelo received her medical training at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She has served on the faculties at Vanderbilt University and Oregon Health and Sciences University, where she was the physician/clinical specialist for Oregon’s Department of Human Services. She has also had the good fortune to work in New Zealand.
Laura’s interview follows.
KIM D. DARY (1952-2020) – High School Friend of David Briggs
Kim Dary
Kim Dary was friends with John O’Neill and Dave Briggs in high school.
On the night of the infamous murder, Kim and John were returning from Madison with another friend, Richard Culles. Rich was 2 years older and had his driver’s license. Dave Briggs’ house was surrounded by squad cars, lights flashing. None of these teen-age boys could have imagined what had just taken place at that big old house.
On October 23, 1999 he married Beth Herrema. They were married 20 years and had 4 children and several grandchildren.
He served in the U.S. Army until his retirement, then worked as a nurse at the Zablocki VA Medical Center and the Union Grove Clinic. He was an active volunteer and fundraiser in his community.
Kim passed away on Saturday, July 11, 2020 surrounded by his family.
Kim’s interview follows (MP3)
KIP DURKIN – High School Friend of David Briggs
Kip’s interview follows (MP3).
DIANE FOREYT – High School Classmate of Donna and David Briggs; Carpooled with Vern and Sue.
Diane Foreyt
Diane Foreyt was a high school friend of Donna and David Briggs; knew Danny Stordock. Carpooled to Madison every day for months with Vern and Suzanne.
Diane’s interview follows (MP3)
MARK FRANKEL, J.D. – Former Circuit Court Judge in Dane County, Wisconsin
Mark Frankel
Mark has been practicing law since 1973, when he received his J.D. from the UW Law School. After working for U.S. District Judge James E. Doyle, he helped to establish the Madison law firm of Frankel, Langhammer & Pines. In 1979, he was elected to the Dane County Circuit Court, becoming one of the youngest judges in Wisconsin history. Mark currently serves as a Wisconsin Reserve Judge.
During his 20 years on the bench, Mark pioneered the use of mediation in the courtroom. He earned a reputation as a judge who not only adjudicated cases, but also afforded litigants an opportunity to resolve their disputes in an informal yet binding manner. He was invited to join the faculty of the Wisconsin Judicial College, where he taught judges across the state about how, when, and why to use mediation in court proceedings, and became an Assistant Dean of the Judicial College.
He also authored and edited the Wisconsin Benchbook, a desktop reference guide for judges. As his reputation as a judicial educator grew, Mark was asked to join the faculty of the National Judicial College in Reno, Nevada, where he taught advanced evidence to judges from around the country for a number of years.
Mark’s interview follows (MP3)
CHRISTINE FUNK – Complex Litigation / Forensic Science
Christine Funk
Christine Funk started her career representing defendants in criminal cases in 1994. After 18 years as a criminal defense attorney in Minnesota, she jumped at the chance to become General Counsel for the country’s first independent crime lab.
After four years in Washington, D.C., Christine returned to the Twin Cities to develop her criminal practice. She represents defendants facing criminal charges throughout Minnesota.
Christine also consults with other attorneys on cases involving forensic science. She also consults with scriptwriters, novelists, and others interested in forensic science.
Christine’s interview follows (MP3)
GARY GRASSMAN – High School Friend of David Briggs.
Gary’s interview follows (MP3)
CALLEN HARTY – Writer, Theatrical Director, Abuse Counselor
Callen Harty
Callen was the best friend of Dan Stordock for many years.
Callen’s interview follows (MP3)
ROBERT HOFFMAN – Retired Teacher, Oregon WI Public Schools
Bob Hoffman was Danny Stordock’s 7th grade teacher.
Bob’s interview follows (MP3)
DR. JASON KOLOWSKI – Forensic Case Review Consultant
Dr. Jason Kolowski
Dr. Kolowski is the principal consultant for Forensic Insight Consulting, a private consulting firm which specializes in forensic case review, laboratory management and development, accreditation review, certification training, and expert testimony as well as forensic case processing, specifically consulting in active missing persons cold cases.
Dr. Kolowski brings over nineteen years of forensic experience to the forensics field after beginning his career at the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner, where he began as a DNA and crime-scene analyst, worked to develop and validate the mitochondrial DNA laboratory, assisted with the World Trade Center recovery and identification effort, served as long-term supervisor to the Homicide and Sexual Crimes section, and oversaw the internal development of a custom LIMS system before accepting the managerial position in D.C. at the Department of Forensic Sciences, where he served the Distrct for three years as the Director of the Forensic Science Laboratories before founding Forensic Insight Consulting. To date, Dr. Kolowski has consulted on several high-profile cases, including the Barbara Miller case in Pennsylvania and the Natalee Holloway case in Aruba.
Dr. Kolowski holds a Fellow certification with the American Board of Criminalistics and is a member of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. Dr. Kolowski teaches as an adjunct professor in the graduate program for Stevenson University, and lectures extensively about forensic science and education. Dr. Kolowski is a co-author of the book Forensics Demystified, has authored peer-reviewed research articles, and serves as a reviewer for the Forensic Science International: Genetics and Forensic Science Policy and Management journals as well as serves as an associate editor for the Forensic Research and Criminology International journal.
Dr. Kolowski earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the City University of New York, a Master of Science in forensic science from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in biochemistry and philosophy from Cornell College. When he is not traveling around the world, Dr. Kolowski resides with his wife and two children in the countryside of Northern Virginia.
https://www.forensicinsightllc.com/blog/
Dr. Kolowski’s interview follows (MP3)
KEN LAND, MSW – Founder and Clinical Director of the Counseling Center of Ann Arbor – CCAA.
Ken talks about his forthcoming book on women who abuse men.
Ken Land
Ken Land has pursued his calling as a mental/emotional health care provider since the late 1970s. Ken started his career in mental health as a care worker in an inpatient division of adult psychiatry at a prestigious university hospital in Ann Arbor, Michigan. In order to become skilled at helping people, Ken completed hundreds of hours of workshop and institute training and earned a master’s degree in Social Work in 1982. He founded and continues to direct The Counseling Center of Ann Arbor, a comprehensive outpatient mental health and substance abuse clinic located in downtown Ann Arbor, Michigan.
While listening with the “third ear” to his patients’ stories, Ken noticed a pattern among men, that of choosing and attempting to sustain involvement with women who were not good for them, who abused them. He noticed that these hapless but well-meaning men consistently made poor choices in who they chose as romantic partners. He documented some of these astonishing stories for a book. One of Ken’s goals is to help men to stop demonizing women and instead to look at their own behavior as the source of their problems. The desired outcome is for men to adopt clear and compelling alternatives in order to form successful, fulfilling relationships.
Ken survived growing up in an abusive, alcoholic home embedded in suburban American neighborhoods, rife with bullying, hatred of Jews and abuse of every kind. It was not much safer inside the home with drinking, paranoid parents whose thinking and behaving deviated greatly from evidence based reality.
http://storytellingtherapy.com/pages/author.html
Ken’s interview follows (MP3)
JOHN O’NEILL – School Friend of Dave Briggs
John O’Neill (age 16)
Kim Dary and I were only a couple of months apart in age. I lived in Oregon from birth to 18. Kim’s family moved to Oregon just prior to his freshman year in High School in 1966. We became good friends shortly after his arrival.
Dave Briggs was a year younger than Kim and me. I got to know Dave about a year prior to meeting Kim. Dave and I were good friends as well.
I spent a lot of time with Dave when I was about 14 and he was 13. I would see him almost daily at the local swimming pool in the summer of 66. Kip Durkin would come down to the pool once in a while. Kim moved to Oregon that same summer.
All of us had fathers who required us to do jobs around the house – mowing the lawn, painting, washing the car, cleaning up our rooms – whatever needed to be done. Kim’s parents were the new owners of the local A&W Root Beer stand so his “chores” were pretty clearly spelled out. His parents were no nonsense types and all of us knew it.
I recall Dave had his chores to do before he would be free to come to the pool. Kip Durkin’s father was probably the strictest of all. Because of this, Kip did not frequent the pool nearly as much as Kim, Dave and I did.
The Victorian house Dave lived in was easily the biggest house in Oregon. Even the Catholic School nun’s convent located a few blocks down the street was not as big as Dave’s house. It was my first exposure to a Victorian house and although I always wanted a big place like that I didn’t actually buy one until I was 66! But, better late than never!
Although Dave’s house was huge, and the layout inside was really impressive, it was not a place I particularly liked to be. Dave was usually telling his little brother Danny to “Get Lost” and his mother would never come into the room we were in – if she wanted something from Dave she would just yell to him. It was not a “warm” place to be. Most of the time though, his mother and Vern were not around when I was there with Dave. If they were, Dave usually came over to my place or we met at some other location.
Dave, Kim, Kip and I all had a mutual friend, Richard Culles. Richard was 2 years older than we were – and I think it was the summer of 66 that “Rich” got his driver’s license. His parents sold him their car when they bought a new one. That meant FREEDOM!
This of course increased Rich’s popularity immensely! Dave, Kim, Kip and I would routinely cruise to Madison with “Rich”. Great fun at that age!
Kim Dary (school friend)
Kim and I were returning from Madison with Rich the night of the murder. I can still picture in my mind Dave’s house being surrounded by squad cars with their lights flashing. At that moment, it never occurred to Rich, Kim or me that something had gone down between Sue and Vern – and we couldn’t imagine what in hell Dave could have done to warrant his house being surrounded by cop cars!
When you spend that much time with other kids, you get to know them pretty well. We all knew Dave very well – and he was well liked. We all knew what a “normal” David Briggs” was like. The Dave Briggs that all of us had known so well died that night as well and was never seen again. Within months, Dave was on drugs continuously. It didn’t matter what the drug was – marijuana to LSD, Dave took it all. All of us eventually came to the conclusion that Sue took the rap for Dave – and by allowing her to do that, Dave fought his inner demons for the rest of his life.
John’s interview follows (MP3)
KEN “BUCK” PLEDGER – Police Officer, second on the scene after the murder at the Stordock house.
Ken Pledger
Buck was a long-time Law Enforcement Officer, beginning his career in Oregon, and eventually transferring to the Dane County Traffic Enforcement Division. The Traffic Division became the Dane County Sheriff’s Dept., where Buck retired as a detective in 1999. He loved to fish, spending vacations on the lakes of Canada. Buck enjoyed hunting with his sons-in-law and grandchildren, watching the Packers and Badgers and taking care of his pets. But he most especially enjoyed being with his wife and family.
Pledger was one of the first officers on the murder scene, March 1, 1970.
Buck’s interview follows (MP3)
THOMAS A. POWELL, PH.D. – Forensic Psychologist
Thomas A. Powell, Ph.D.
Thomas Powell, Ph.D. is a Licensed Psychologist-Doctorate and founding partner of Vermont Forensic Assessment, PLLC. He provides comprehensive psychological evaluations, risk assessments and consultation for individuals referred by attorneys, courts, private and public sector employers, corrections, child protective services, and other parties. He develops nuanced and humanistic evaluations of referred clients, integrating a wide range of data sources, including clinical and structured interviews, psychometric testing, risk assessment protocols, records, and collateral sources. He offers specialized expertise in the evaluation of individuals charged with sexual offenses, crimes of violence, and crimes involving post-traumatic stress disorder or other mental illness, as well as fitness for duty in employment settings. He evaluates clients for competency to stand trial, sanity, and sentencing.
As former longtime director of clinical services for the Vermont Department of Corrections, he offers specialized expertise in the assessment, management and clinical treatment of complex cases within prison and probation/parole systems. Dr. Powell is regularly qualified as an expert to provide psychological evidence and testimony in Vermont state and federal criminal courts. He also provides evaluations, testimony, and consultation in civil litigation cases.
Outside of his clinical practice, Dr. Powell provides training nationally to clinicians, criminal justice case managers, probation/parole officers, academics and others in the use and implementation of risk assessment procedures for justice system populations. He and his family live in southern Chittenden county where he enjoys snow-shoeing, biking, woodworking, and trail building.
Educational History
University of Vermont, Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, 1993
St. Michael’s College, M.A. in Clinical Psychology, 1990
University of Virginia, B.A., 1973
Credentials
Licensed Psychologist-Doctorate
Master Trainer, Level of Services Inventory risk assessment protocols
Memberships
American Psychological Association, Div. 41 (American Psychology-Law Society)
International Association for Correctional and Forensic Psychology
Association for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers (ATSA)
Vermont Psychological Association
https://vtfa.com/about-us/thomas-powell-ph-d/
Thomas’ interview follows (MP3)
KENNETH ROBBINS, MD, PhD – A Top Forensic Psychiatrist in Wisconsin
Dr. Kenneth Robbins
Kenneth Robbins, MD, MPH, has combined training in internal medicine, psychiatry, and public health. To understand a patient’s emotional condition, he believes it is important to look at the context in which they live, including the person’s life circumstances, background, state of health, use of medications or other substances, spiritual and religious beliefs, temperament, culture, and ethnicity.
Dr. Robbins earned his undergraduate degree in neural sciences at the University of Rochester, in New York, and a medical degree and master’s of public health from the University of Michigan. After a psychiatry residency at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, he joined the clinical faculty and is currently a clinical professor of psychiatry. He is also on the clinical faculty at the Medical College of Wisconsin, in Milwaukee, where he focuses on psychiatry and the law.
He is board certified in internal medicine and psychiatry and is a fellow in the American Psychiatric Association. Dr. Robbins has practiced clinical psychiatry since finishing his residency. He also has a forensic psychiatry practice, in which he evaluates people who are referred by attorneys or judges, and he provides consultation to several medical, legal, and public interest organizations.
Dr. Robbins has published a number of articles and has lectured widely on a variety of subjects within psychiatry. He has received many awards and has been active in the organization of both public and private psychiatric systems.
Ken’s interview follows (MP3).
MARY ROBNETT, J.D. – Prosecutor, Pierce County, Washington
Mary Robnett
Mary Robnett has dedicated her career to seeking justice, prosecuting offenders, and supporting survivors. She joined the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office in 1994 and handled robberies, homicides, kidnappings, sexual assault cases and more. Robnett spent 10 years in the Special Assault Unit, which led to her longtime involvement with the Sexual Assault Center of Pierce County.
Mary Robnett took office as Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney on January 1, 2019.
Robnett led the office’s criminal division as Chief Criminal Deputy. She prosecuted many prominent cases, including the Zina Linnik homicide, the Parkland Rapist, and Edgewood’s Craigslist murderers. She later joined the state Attorney General’s Office in the Sexually Violent Predators unit, working to keep sex offenders away from our communities.
Robnett and her husband Bill, a retired law enforcement officer, are residents of unincorporated Pierce County. They enjoy hunting, fishing, and other outdoor activities together with their Labrador retriever, Ellie.
Mary’s interview follows (MP3)
ALICE AND MIKE SEELIGER – Former Owners of the “Mansion” in Oregon, WI
Alice and Mike Seeliger
Alice and Mike Seeliger lived in the Oregon mansion from 1977-2001 and raised their family in the home.
Alice and Mike’s interview follows (MP3)
DONNA STORDOCK, RN – Psych Nurse
Donna Stordock
Donna Stordock has been a mental health psychiatric nurse for over 40 years, in both Wisconsin and Florida, most recently at Baycare Behavioral Health. She graduated high school in Germany, while her father was stationed there in the US Army, and she studied at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is the niece of Vern Stordock, as her father is Vern’s older brother.
Donna’s interview follows (MP3)
DAVID STROEDE – Childhood Friend of Danny Stordock
David and Kari Stroede
David Stroede was a childhood friend of Danny Stordock. Went to Oregon, WI High School, owner at Meadowview Farm in Augusta, WI, and currently lives in Winter, WI. He likes antiques, farming, and is a Musky Lure maker and guide. From David: “After living the city life for 32 years, Kari and I moved to Northwestern Wisconsin. Meadowview Farm is now home, a slice of country at its best. This historic farm was built in 1857, and was owned by the 6th generation of the Joseph Strader family until we bought it. Our son Ian is now 23, and attending college at Eau Claire.”
David’s interview follows (MP3)
DALE STUKEL – From the Stordock Family
Dale Stukel
Dale Stukel is the former nephew-in-law of Vern Stordock.
Dale’s interview follows (MP3)
PETER VRONSKY – Author on Serial Killers
Peter Vronsky
Peter Vronsky is a Canadian author, filmmaker and investigative historian. He holds a PhD in criminal justice history nd espionage in international relations from the University of Toronto.
He is the author of the best seller true crime histories Serial Killers The Method and Madness of Monsters (2004), Female Serial Killers: How and Why Women Become Monsters, and Sons of Cain A History of Serial Killers From the Stone Age to the Present (2018), a New York Times Editors’ Choice. He is the director of several feature films, including Bad Company (1980) and Mondo Moscow (1992).
Peter’s interview follows (MP3)