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There is horrific evil in this world. We prefer not to have to face it and most often we manage to avoid confronting it. In a Boise federal courtroom over the last few days that wasn’t possible. Unimaginable horror and evil at its darkest was portrayed by prosecutors who want convicted killer Joseph Edward Duncan III to die for his crimes against an innocent family and against humanity.

Jurors cringed, barely able to stand witnessing the images on a video tape Duncan used to record his sexual abuse and torture of a nine year old boy at a remote campsite in a forest in Western Montana.

The video was probably unnecessary. Descriptions by Shasta Groene, also on video tape, given to law officers only hours after she was removed from Joseph Duncan’s custody, said all that jury would need in order to call for the defendant’s death. The older sister of Dylan was forced to watch as this demon of a man abused and killed her brother.

Joseph Duncan is perhaps the most grotesque form of evil personified on this planet yet, sadly, he is not a rare monster.

This evil is plentiful and takes many forms. It is a serial killer, an abusive father or mother, a tyrannical dictator, an international terrorist. It exists in millions of awful people. It prowls through the world seeking the ruin of souls.

Consider that killing Joseph Duncan, which I think is inevitable, may provide us with a sense of justice and relief, but his demise brings about the end only one of the devil’s foot soldiers.

       If you’re on this blog, you likely know KXLY4 and the stories we cover. Thus, you’re aware of the Joseph Duncan sentencing case underway in Boise right now. And you’re aware of what he admits to doing… kidnapping, torturing, raping, and killing. We’ve been covering the story since 2005, when Duncan broke into the Groene home in Wolf Lodge, which is why I must admit I’d almost grown immune to the story. I don’t like admitting that.   It makes me feel guilty.  It makes me sad. It makes me feel disconnected.

       But after following this week’s case in Boise, being disconnected seems like a good thing. It’s a much worse feeling knowing exactly what Dylan and Shasta Groene endured in that Montana Wilderness… what happened to Dylan… what Shasta saw. It’s a much worse feeling knowing the extent to which Duncan plotted and planned his murders. It’s a much worse feeling seeing the letters written by those children to their dad, assuring him they were okay and that they would return home safe. Now, disconnected seems like a happy, safe place. Disconnected seems like a place that many following this case would like to be… the media, the jurors, and especially the victim’s families.

       The case taking place inside that courtroom this week doesn’t allow us that leisure. We are consumed, absored, enthralled with what this human being did to an innocent family. I am dumbfounded as I sit at my computer reading opening statements and looking at evidence submitted into the court… letters written by Shasta and Dylan, zip ties used to bind their family members before they were killed, duct tape. Much of the information revealed so far, we knew. However, when you see it, when you read it, when you open yourself up… the feelings are overwhelming, exhausting even.

We’ve been covering the Joseph Duncan case for three years and three months now. Over that time, we’ve produced countless stories on Duncan’s background, criminal history, ideology, etc. Now that we’re on the eve of opening statements in his sentencing, I wanted to comply for you some of the basic background information you may have missed or forgotten about over the years. Before you read this, I want to respond to an irate message I received on my voicemail this morning. A woman was extremely upset that we’re even covering this case. She says we’re making Dunacn a hero and a celebrity by putting him on the news. I disagree. I feel like the only way to honor the victims whose lives Duncan has destroyed is to show what’s being done to bring justice in their cases. If we ignored Duncan and this case, we’d be doing a disservice to the victims. So, if you aren’t interested in seeing the coverage, I apologize. But, you’ll be seeing a lot of it (here and in other local media) in the coming weeks and days. That said, here’s some basic background information, to help guide you through what’s ahead.

*Joseph Duncan is originally from Western Washington. In 1980, he was sentenced to 16 years in prison for raping a young boy at gunpoint.

*Duncan had problems with other inmates in prison, by his own accounts and what is shown in his Department of Corrections records. He was moved around to several facilities in Washington state.

*Duncan was released in 1994 and moved to Seattle.

*In 1996, two young sisters in Duncan’s neighborhood went missing and were later found dead. Duncan’s home was less than a mile from where they disappeared. His place of work was less than a mile from where their bodies were found eight months later.  Police never released information about a suspect. When Duncan had Shasta Groene in Montana, he reportedly confessed to her that he killed those two girls. They are referred to in court documents as possible victims of Duncan, but he has not been charged.

*In 1997, Duncan violated his parole and, police later learned, went to California. While there, police say he kidnapped a young boy named Anthony Martinez, killed him and dumped his body in the woods. Police never connected Duncan to the crime until his arrest in Kootenai County. Duncan’s fingerprints match those left at the Martinez crime scene. He has been charged with Anthony’s murder.

*Duncan was later arrested in Missouri and sent back to prison for violating his parole.

*In 2000, Duncan was released and moved to Fargo, North Dakota. He enrolled in North Dakota State University. He majored in computer science and had two jobs working in computers.

*In 2004, Duncan was accused of molesting two boys in a public park in Detroit Lakes, MN.

 *In April 2005, a wealthy businessman gave Duncan money to pay his $15,000 bail. The check bounced and Duncan skipped town. He left behind notes on the walls of his home in Fargo, North Dakota and asked a neighbor to take care of his cats.

*Before leaving town, Duncan went to a Wal-Mart in Fargo and bought night-vision goggles and other items later used in the Groene/McKenzie murders.

*Duncan rented an SUV from the airport in Minneapolis. He never returned it and it was reported stolen. Duncan was driving that red Jeep Cherokee when he was arrested in Coeur d’Alene in July, 2005.

*According to his own statements, Duncan was driving along I-90 outside Coeur d’Alene when he spotted Dylan and Shasta Groene playing outside. For the next couple of days, Duncan stalked the family using those night-vision goggles. On the night of May 15, Duncan broke into the Wolf Lodge home, killing Brenda Groene, her 13-year old son Slade and her boyfriend, Mark McKenzie. He kidnapped Shasta and Dylan and took them to a remote campsite outside of St. Regis, Montana. An Amber Alert was issued and a nationwide hunt for the children and their abductor began.

*In the early morning hours of July 2, 2005, Duncan and Shasta walked into a Denny’s restaurant in Coeur d’Alene. A waitress and several patrons thought it was odd to see a child there at that time of the morning - and, also recognized the little girl from the pictures hanging all over town. To keep Duncan and Shasta from leaving, waitress Amber Deahn stalled them by making Shasta a milkshake. When police arrived, Shasta admitted who she was and took Duncan into custody.

*After his arrest, investigators discovered Duncan’s blog, on which his writings became increasingly erratic. He talked of wanting to “harm society as much as he can and then [wanting to] die.” He also talked of demons that had taken over. The last entry was written two days before the Wolf Lodge murders.

*We learned after his arrest that Duncan held the Groene children for six weeks off a remote logging road near St. Regis, Montana. On several occasions, Duncan took the children into St. Regis, but no one recognized them as the missing children from Coeur d’Alene. Sometime during that six weeks, Duncan explained to Shasta how he killed her family. Also during that six weeks, Duncan took pictures and videos of the children, including a video of himself abusing Dylan in a remote Montana cabin. Those videos will be allowed in court - and, the courtroom will be open to public when and if they are shown.

*Duncan later said he wanted to return Shasta to reunite her with his family. He referred to her as an angel.

*While in jail, Duncan started blogging again. He was writing letters to someone “on the outside” who was posting them on Duncan’s behalf. Shortly after it was reported in the media, the blogging stopped.

*Days before his trial was set to begin in Kootenai County, Duncan pleaded guilty to the murders at Wolf Lodge. He was sentenced to three life terms without the possibility of parole. As part of the plea deal, prosecutors in Kootenai County said that if Duncan did not the death penalty in the federal case, he would be returned to Kootenai County for sentencing and they would seek the death penalty. Duncan was transferred to the Idaho Maximum Security Institution in Boise and held in protective custody.

*December 3, 2007: Duncan pleads guilty to the federal charges against him. That includes kidnapping Dylan and Shasta Groene and killing Dylan. For these crimes, the sentencing begins August 13, 2008.

As you can imagine, there’s a lot more to the case than just this. These, though, are some background facts you may not hear about in our coverage of the sentencing. This case is very unusual - both locally and nationally. Rarely do you see federal death penalty cases in which defendants represent themselves. Also, as I wrote on this blog a few weeks ago, it doesn’t appear Duncan will try to sway the jury against sentencing him to death. I have long believed he wants to die rather than spend the rest of his life in prison. Whatever happens, I hope more than anything that the only surviving victim, Shasta, gets to see justice for her family and for the horrific crimes she’s endured.

     As expected, we received a couple of important rulings today in the Joseph Duncan case. I figured we would see some today, since jury selection finally resumes tomorrow. The rulings in the case were split, as far as the media is concerned; though, I was really surprised at what the judge decided in this case.

     Judge Edward Lodge was ruling on a couple of issues actually brought up by the media. A group of TV stations and newspapers joined together a few months ago and requested better access to the trial (both the courtroom and the court files). The judge sided with the media in some of the requests and denied the media’s motions in others. First, the judge ruled the courtroom will be closed when Shasta Groene takes the stand. It’s not entirely surprising, as Shasta is an innocent young girl who has already been through more than her share of trauma. Those speaking on Shasta’s behalf say forcing Shasta to testify in front of a crowd of strangers will further traumatize her. However, the judge is also still considering letting Shasta testify via closed-circuit TV so she won’t have to face Duncan in court. If that’s the case and Shasta won’t actually see the people in the gallery of the courtroom, I see no reason why the media would not be allowed. As it is, we’re getting a written transcript of Shasta’s testimony as soon as it is complete. While I agree with the judge not wanting to traumatize Shasta, I believe every protection she needs is being put into place. If she’s not going to be in the courtroom, I believe the media should be able to hear what she has to say.

    Judge Lodge’s second decision surprised me even more. He ruled that the courtroom should be open to the public if/when attorneys show videos Duncan took during his time in Montana with the Groene children. Very few people have seen the videos, but I’ve talked to people who have direct knowledge of what they show. They include images of Duncan torturing Dylan and I’m extremely surprised the judge will allow them in open court. However, I do believe it was the right decision. Those videos will be absolutely pivotal in this case and, as key evidence, should not be kept from the public. I can’t imagine, though, who will be able to sit there and watch them. I will point out, also, this is federal court; we won’t be able to take pictures or video of anything that takes place. Everything you see on TV, you’ll have to rely on what the reporter who was there can tell you about what happened. If I were to be in the courtroom, I don’t think I’d watch the tapes. Instead, I’d watch the reaction of the court and the jurors, as they’re the ones who will decide whether Duncan lives or dies and what role these tapes will play in their decision. Still, I think this decision and the knowledge they may be forced to watch child abuse on tape could make it extremely difficult to seat a jury in this case.

The story today made headlines across the country. Convicted killer Joseph Duncan will be able to defend himself during his death penalty proceedings. It’s something we knew last week was likely to happen, but now that it’s official, there’s a lot of speculation about what is going to happen. Will this be a circus? Is it allowing Duncan to spew his ideology to the world? Is he only doing this to confront Shasta Groene on the stand? I’m not an expert on this case, but I have spent a LOT of time covering it and I have my own theories about why Duncan has chosen to do this - and, what will happen once this sentencing gets underway. Again, these are only theories - I’m really interested to see how it actually plays out.

First of all, I think Joseph Duncan wants to die. I think that’s what he meant when he told the federal court judge, “I don’t believe [my attorneys] can ethically represent my ideology.” Duncan’s attorneys are vehemently opposed to the death penalty, both in this case and in all others. Duncan has reportedly said in the past that he feels he deserves to be punished for what he has done. Even before his attacks at Wolf Lodge, he wrote on his blog, “My intent is to harm society as much as I can, then die.” During his sentencing in Kootenai County, he did show some signs of remorse. He also wrote a letter from jail that said, “If dying, even going to hell could erase what has happened, I would volunteer in a moment. But, it can’t. Even though dying at this point in my life would be easier than facing what I have done.” I believe he would prefer not to drag this out any further - that he would rather die and have it all be over with. For that reason, I can’t see Duncan putting on some incredible defense - or making the case that he should be allowed to live, considering what he’s done.

I also don’t believe Duncan will want to question Shasta Groene. Of this fact, I am not sure. I really am just speculating. But, based on past actions, I don’t believe he wants to put her on the stand and pepper her with questions. Duncan has referred to Shasta as an angel, and said that God stopped him from harming her and asked him to bring her back to her family. I’m not denying that Duncan is capable of anything, but I have a feeling if she is called as a witness, he would use his opportunity to either form some strange apology - or not ask her any questions at all. I don’t know if that’s the case, but I absolutely hope so. She’s been through way too much already in her young life, she should never have to face him again.

Finally, what will happen during jury selection? Attorneys have the right to question potential jurors and object to jurors they do not believe will try the case fairly. I can’t imagine being a potential juror in that case and having to answer to a convicted child serial killer. But, in court proceedings today, Duncan revealed he will not question potential jurors. He passed that duty onto the judge, who has the right to conduct voir dire on behalf of either side.

Again, these are only theories and are based solely on my experiences covering the case. I have no idea how being incarcerated during this time has changed Joseph Duncan, so I can’t be sure what his frame of mind is right now. I do hope whatever happens, this case is resolved quickly (at least from here on out). This community - and, especially the Groene and McKenzie families - deserve some end to the horror they’ve experienced. And, thankfully, the judge in this case has the right to force Duncan’s defense team to step in at any time. So, if things were to get out of hand, the judge and those experienced attorneys can get things back on track.