The big issue the show pursues is that Cameron was a viable suspect and the cops seemed to want to find ways to let him off the hook and make him a witness against Emmanuel. Jason Statham and Aubrey Plaza do not seem like a match made in action-comedy-chemistry heaven, but it somehow works. Alanis-Mejia was allegedly beaten by jailers Raul Galarza and Mark Solis while Alanis-Mejia was incarcerated at the Carrizales-Rucker Detention Center in Olmito in September 2014, the lawsuit reads. and Nirmala Jinaga, a professor of computer engineering and a housewife, respectively. They were primarily interested in the Halloween party she had attended that Friday, which was held inside of four separate apartments and saw more than two dozen guests coming-and-going well into the morning hours (which is when Arpana had died). Months later, members of the Pacific Northwest Riders, the motorcycle club that Arpana had joined, would organize memorial rides in her honor (which took them out to Snoqualmie Falls, one of Arpana's favorite places to visit in Washington). Writing the Atlantic story was a bit of a wake [up] call in all the different ways that DNA can be misused. Let's talk about Jeff (Suspect, Episode 7) There are, sadly, myriad reasons why the average American should live in fear of ever having to deal with the criminal justice system, be they guilty of a crime or not. Id written anarticle about DNA forensic science for The Atlantic, and I was like everybody else I thought that DNA worked like it did on Law & Order, where its a green light. On November 21st, 2008 - three weeks after the murder - he spoke to investigators and admitted to being inside of Arpana's apartment during the Halloween party. We're not going to put this to bed. The state was attempting to build a case around the possibility of Emanuel Fair acting alongside an accomplice; who, they had alleged in the first trial, had acted alongside Fair to commit the crime but was not charged with anything for the time being. According to an interview with Coats by Matt Shaer who retraced the steps of Coats' investigation in his podcast, Suspect, and whose interviews helped inform Fair's lawsuit he spotted . Posting comments is now limited to subscribers only. does not exculpate Fair. Over the next hour or so, neighbors on both sides of Arpana would recall hearing what sounding like consensual sex taking place after the party: the neighbors would recall hearing what sounded like muffled moaning coming from her apartment shortly after 3:00 AM, which they were certain was coming from her apartment. She would even join a local motorcycle club, the Pacific Northwest Riders, and many of those in the PNW Riders chat-room would later reminisce about her lack of knowledge when it came to riding bikes, but how she came prepared to take on the challenge with a smile on her face, and her participation on lengthy rides throughout scenic western Washington that summer. They were able to follow the trail of maelstrom throughout the apartment down the hallway, towards the decedent's bedroom, where they discovered her body: that of a 24-year-old from India, who had come to America a few years prior to pursue her "American dream". And when they wake up the next morning, one resident is dead. Justice has not been swift. Arpana Jinaga was a 24-year-old computer programmer, who had moved to the Pacific Northwest in March of 2008. After all, not everything has to be about something bigger than itself, and theres something to be said about delivering the most polished version of a standard. Investigators had seemed particularly hostile towards Fair and had not extended that hostility towards other white suspects (who may have had more of a motive to target Arpana). Things you buy through our links may earnVox Mediaa commission. Youve got some Janning to do! Emanuel Fair spent 9 years in jail for a crime he did not commit proclaiming his innocence through two trials, numerous motions, and drawn out judicial delays. She was last seen by numerous people leaving an apartment on the first floor - where the party had ended up - and was heading back up to her apartment on the third floor (the top level of the complex). October 31st, 2008 - Halloween - had the rare fortune of falling on a Friday. Fair was unable to recall these phone calls, stating that he had likely dialed this young woman's number on accident. Whats Next for Convicted Sex Criminals Harvey Weinstein and R. Kelly? Just because it never happened doesnt mean they cant get back together. Speaking to the Times, this juror recalled: "I think that was the biggest reasonable doubt and no one could eliminate him [as the killer] We found [Fair] not guilty because of reasonable doubt, not because we thought he was completely innocent.". to give the unexplained injury an innocuous excuse. The best musical instrument is a love triangle. Paul Vernon, one of Emanuel Fair's defense attorneys, countered the state's claims; stating that if they were factoring in DNA evidence for the crime, then this neighbor of Arpana's would be just as guilty as Emanuel Fair (if not more so). throughout this episode - who, it turns out, had been one of the investigation's main suspects early on. TikToks Favorite Celebrity Couple Is Kim Kardashian and Michael Cera. By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy and to receive email correspondence from us. In fact, she was the fifth student or worker from India to be murdered in the United States that year; a fact that ultimately led to the United States Hindu Alliance calling for the FBI to investigate this case, as they feared that it could be tied to a widespread rash of hate crimes sweeping the nation. was one of these neighbors, who claimed to have passed out on a couch jutted up against his and Arpana's shared wall, and he said that he was woken up shortly after 3:00 AM to the sound of moaning, before falling back asleep until 10:00 AM. Suspect Season 1 Episode 1. Reply . We have a brutal murder with no suspect. Not only was there just as much incriminating physical evidence implicating him in Arpana's death, but he had committed a ton of strange and bizarre acts around the time of her death that raised suspicion. But Suspect is often so uncomplicated in its telling, it almost seems anonymous. C.J. I hope that answers can still be found in this case, but until such a time, the story of Arpana Jinaga will remain unresolved. The following Monday, her body would be discovered inside of her apartment, the victim of an apparent homicide. Her younger sister, Pavitra, would begin to follow in these footsteps as well, and later pursue a career in computer engineering after Arpana. According to investigators, they were also struggling to piece together a solid motive. But instead of returning home to India, she decided to take another huge leap and accepted a job as a software quality assurance engineer with the tech giant EMC (now known as Dell EMC). The opinions expressed in reader comments are those of the author only and do not reflect the opinions of The Seattle Times. Now that Meredith is gone, it is business as usual at Grey Sloan Memorial. In October of 2010, King County prosecutors announced that they were filing charges against Emanuel Fair for the murder of Arpana Jinaga, based on evidence they had accumulated over nearly two years of investigating. [In the 1980s], you really needed a lot of body fluid, so there was no ambiguity about whose DNA it was. Many had written off the case long ago, due to the belief that DNA had correctly tagged Fair as the killer back in 2010, but the truth is that the story is much more complicated than that. More than a decade later, no one has been held accountable for her murder. Investigators would never ask him what this medication was, or what mental illness it was treating (one of the many missteps that Emanuel Fair's attorneys referred to in their pretrial motions). Suspect is a lot more successful in the latter mode, if only because the series wraps up with yet another genre convention: the original mystery resolves inconclusively. Several suspects and persons-of-interest would be probed during that time, but for almost all of them, there was either something ruling them out entirely or not enough evidence to move forward with the case. Fair was held in jail for nine years and was twice tried but was never convicted. Was there anything that surprised you in your reporting of this story? He was arrested for this crime and ended up pleading guilty to avoid a decade-plus prison sentence (pleading down from 2nd degree to 3rd-degree rape). These pretrial motions would also bring to light a discrepancy within the forensic analysis of the evidence, which would ultimately turn into the longest-lasting dispute in this case, carrying on over years and significantly delaying the state of Emanuel Fair's trial. Alanis' head was forcefully slammed to the ground and "Galarza violently punched and hit Alanis' head, face and body as his blood spilled to the ground.". Those thoughts were welcomed by Arpana's family back home in India, who found it "heartening" to hear what an impact she had had on those in the Seattle area over just a few months. Everything Everywhere All at Once leads with eight nominations tonight. There is no apparent reason why someone would want to take this person from the prime of her life.". would admit that during this time, he had stopped taking his psychiatric medication. Shaer: Its astonishing when you look at a case in this way, the power that every decision has over the rest of the investigation and the trial, the power that individuals have, prosecutors, police, jurors especially. It was around 3:00 AM on November 1st (Saturday) when the apartment's Halloween party began to die down; at which point, Arpana began returning to her apartment to catch some sleep. Together, they decided to enter Arpana's apartment to check in on her, but when they knocked on the apartment door, it swung open. "Classic City Crime," a true-crime podcast hosted by Cameron Jay, centers around the tragic death of Tara Louise Baker. Police had already determined that Arpana's body had been covered in that type of motor oil, so whoever had handled it had likely been involved in her death. When officers and investigators had first arrived at Arpana's apartment, they made note of the smell of chemical agents throughout it. According to police spokesmen early on, what investigators were finding indicated homicide - signs of a physical struggle and potential signs of sexual trauma - but they would remain tight-lipped in the days to come. Can Anyone Predict Whos Going to Win Best Supporting Actress? would attend a party at a friend's house in Everett, and while there, attempted to wrestle them. Whoever had forced entry into the apartment had attempted to clean and cover up their crime afterward. She recalled one of these voicemails sounding like constant movement on the other end, but nothing verbally being said. It would soon become clear to them that someone had attempted to scrub the apartment of their presence, wiping bleach onto several pieces of furniture, as well as a table in the living room (from which, fluid had spilled down onto the carpet, permanently staining it). Gregory Hobbs, another member of the club, said in the same article: "She would strive to succeed in everything and she did just that. The team, led by Matthew . Emanuel Fair's attorneys would argue that while there might have been DNA implicating him in the crime, there was just as much implicating others; including the neighbor that had been tied to this case from the very beginning, who I've identified as "C.J." In fact, they posited throughout the first trial that he may have been an accomplice; an uncharged accomplice, but an accomplice nonetheless. He lost 9 years of his life simply waiting for a chance to prove his innocence. "There have been multiple reports between 2012 and 2020 of Carrizales guards provoking inmates in order to get reaction from the inmate and then beat the inmate," the lawsuit stated. Despite her not having any experience riding a motorcycle, she planned on using one as her primary mode of transportation. And there is nobody in prison or even charged with this murder right now. However, when police revealed that they had obtained a log of his text messages and calls directly from his cell provider, he audibly responded "oh crap" and then claimed ignorance. Its absence led investigators to speculate that robbery had played some kind of motive, as the killer might have stolen the bike to flee from the scene, but police would later locate the motorcycle at a repair shop in Everett, where Arpana had taken it days prior. Police had publicly speculated that Arpana's killer - who had stolen her cell phone and digital camera - might have attempted to distribute the stolen items through pawn shops, so this seems to be more than pure coincidence. Emanuel Fair's second trial began just last year, in 2019, and again, tried to reach a jury consensus regarding his guilt. They dance and drink. was interviewed multiple times by investigators, and each time, was unable to remember certain details: including what he had been up to during the estimated time of the murder (3:00 - 8:00 AM). She had traveled the globe in pursuit of an exciting and adventurous life, made a name for herself in the notoriously-competitive tech sector by the age of 24, endeared herself to dozens of strangers and it had all ended with one senseless act of violence. was their ultimate undoing, and it had been a problem of their own making (as they had hoped to try C.J. They can be found on Instagram @readrunsea; This ultimately ended up impacting the jury, as they had not been informed about the details of Fair's prior mistrial, and the testimony of C.J. Arpana's body was taken to the King County Medical Examiner's office for an autopsy, to determine the cause and manner of death. More than two dozen people would filter through the numerous apartments that evening, including Arpana's. The jury was unable to come to a consensus regarding Fair's guilt, resulting in a mistrial. So I just finished the Suspect podcast on Wondery +, and am finding myself feeling mislead by the hosts after doing some additional research after the fact. And while TrueAllele had not yet been used by a prosecution in Washington state at this point, it had been used to obtain dozens of convictions all over the country and was seen as a reliable tool for law enforcement. TrueAllele was utilized heavily by this investigation and was able to come up with results that were far more definitive than anything the crime lab itself had been able to determine. In pretrial motions filed by Fair's attorneys, it was claimed that Emanuel Fair, a black man, had been treated very differently from other suspects or POIs (most of whom were white). Since its release on Aug. 31,Suspecthas vaulted to the top spot on Chartables U.S. rankings of most listened to Apple podcasts. Mar. Im trying to tell the truth dont cut this podcast to make me look like a maybe suspect. Later, a woman who served as the jury foreperson in a pivotal trial talked about her responsibility as follows: I had to pay attention. Prosecutors made it clear that they were seeking more than the recommended sentence - 45 years - which they were allowed to pursue because of the aggravated circumstances of her death. By the age of 24, Arpana Jinaga had already lived a full and rewarding life and seemed poised to leave a positive impact on the rest of the world. It seemed more like a momentary argument to them than a sign of anything serious and didn't believe that it was linked to Arpana's death hours later. Suspicious deaths, such as homicide, very rarely happen in Redmond: one of the wealthier suburbs on the outskirts of Seattle, which is known internationally for housing the U.S. headquarters for both Microsoft and Nintendo. Emanuel Demelvin Fair - who was also known as Anthony P. Parker - was 27 years old when charges were filed against him in October of 2010. Of course, for [Arpanas] family, its crushing. While armed robberies and sexual assaults do happen there, they are very low in number compared to other similarly-sized cities. as a suspect which is why they ultimately presented a case that didn't do so. During that time, he had been couch-surfing with a friend at Arpana's apartment complex: a young woman named Leslie, who would actually lie to police about Emanuel staying there (claiming that she was home alone when questioned). Prosecutors made it clear that they'd be pursuing a life sentence, due to the brutality of the crime (not the standard 35-45 year sentence for 1st-degree murder). Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. In 2008, a 24-year-old Redmond-based software engineer named Arpana Jinaga was found strangled in her apartment after a Halloween party in her building. The resulting product is tight as hell, a listening experience of such efficiency that I couldnt help but compulsively move from each episode to the next. C.J. - happened to be nearby. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google These were the last calls or texts Arpana would receive that night, and when questioned about these phone calls, C.J. All rights reserved. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google, This password will be used to sign into all, Shania Twain Gives Rare Update on Her Ex-Husband and Ex-BFF, Journey Should Probably Go Their Separate Ways, 6 Stand-ups Analyze ChatGPTs Attempts to Steal Their Jobs, Rick Scott Is Unfortunately Kind of Right About Novak Djokovic, Rick Scott Is Unfortunately Right About Novak Djokovic, The 7 Best Movies and TV Shows to Watch This Weekend, Ke Huy Quan Continues His Winning Streak at the Independent Spirit Awards. Instead, her life was brought to a violent and sudden end the morning after a Halloween party, and no one has been held to task for that. Even forensic analysis has its limits, as King County prosecutors and investigators in the Redmond area learned from this case. showed up to the Halloween party rather late and was already heavily-intoxicated when he arrived. All of this evidence made it virtually impossible for prosecutors to rule out C.J. The lawsuit states abuse by guards also continued when Sheriff Omar Lucio took over in 2005, although Lucio had vowed to clean up jail abuses by guards. How did that happen? It would later be found that other items were missing from the crime scene, including at least one of Arpana's ID cards, her Blackberry (cell phone), and her digital camera; none of which would ever be recovered. They argue and fight. This included the nearly two years it took them to single out Emanuel Fair as a suspect; during which time, investigators had hired a psychic to help point them in the right direction, which highlighted how adrift the investigators had been up until that point. At the time of this announcement - in October of 2010 - he was incarcerated at the McNeil Island Correction Center in Steilacoom for failing to update his sex offender registration and was not expected to be released until 2012. Typically, when police recommend filing charges against someone, they don't follow that up with any investigation of their own and that's sadly what happened here. Both jailers acted under color and are not entitled to qualify for immunity because the excessive use of force violated Alanis-Mejia's Fourteen Amendment constitutional rights, the lawsuit alleged. Here was a case where a woman was murdered and there were years of investigation, years of pursuing various suspects, two trials. When I started talking to Emanuel and then to Ben Goldsmith, his attorney, I was like, Wow, this case is sort of exactly what Ive been thinking about. It was DNA that drew us to it initially. Not only had he been at the party, lived next-door, and had a close personal relationship with the victim, but evidence found at or near the crime scene also seemed to implicate him. Unlike Emanuel Fair, he also had a prior relationship with Arpana, lived next-door to her, and had been noticeably resentful towards her in the weeks leading up to her death. "Galarza and Solis intentionally escalated the interaction by commenting in a derogatory fashion about Alanis' mother.". This area - Redmond, Washington - is a relative stranger to violent crime. Jay arrived at the apartment complex at around 9:00 AM and made his way to Arpana's apartment, which one of her neighbors - who I'll nickname "C.J." If the state wanted to pursue charges against Emanuel Fair, then they were well within their right to do so, but attempting to convict both him and an uncharged accomplice for crimes that they might have committed together was unconstitutional. Friends recall that she spoke of opening an animal sanctuary for endangered species in the future. DNA evidence was linked to three men and ultimately used to charge Emanuel Fair, a Black man from Seattle. They argued against the analysis performed by TrueAllele; at least, until they were able to look through the source code of the software to determine just how, exactly, the program had come to this consensus. As they were walking to a jail cell where Alanis was to be housed, they continued to yell at him and at one point Galarza then proceeds "without provocation or justification to push Alanis forward," the lawsuit stated. It's also worth pointing out that the same evidence used against Emanuel Fair - the DNA evidence analyzed by TrueAllele - revealed that C.J. Privacy Policy and The empty bottle of motor oil was found inside of a plastic bag, which also contained Arpana's Halloween costume, a blood-stained bathrobe, and sheets from Arpana's bed, which were conspicuously missing from the crime scene. There has been no sign of activity in the case in some time, due to the prolonged trials of Emanuel Fair. Thats depressing. "In 2004, a correctional officer, Lt. Hilda Trevino, blew the whistle on fellow guards' mistreatment of inmates. All that we know for sure is that Arpana had already lived a full life by the age of 24, and could have continued changing the world for the better. It was soaking in the tub, in a mixture of water and bleach. If they did, youd probably see a news cycle about it by now. After all, he was the only one facing charges, and him facing charges for two people was - at its core - unconstitutional. The two disgraced men have both been sentenced for sex crimes. The twelve jurors, who had originally leaned 9-3 in favor of acquittal, had been sent back to deliberate before ultimately coming up with a split decision (6-6 in favor of guilty/not-guilty, 5 of whom believed that "C.J." According to the 15-year-old victim, Fair had raped her numerous times, but this culminated in a final incident in the city of Burien that saw Fair escalate in violence, choking the teenage girl at gunpoint. His reason for making this trip has never been uncovered, but it is believed that he might have committed crimes in the Seattle area over this three-day span in which Arpana Jinaga ended up dead. An exclusive trailer for Suspect is below. But it does leave me with a strong sense of want, and a feeling that the genre is long overdue for a quantum leap forward in its language. They could try each of the men separately or together, but couldn't try one for the potential crimes of both. This would ultimately lead to a long and drawn-out dispute through the court system, as Cybergenetics CEO Dr. Mark Perlin refused to divulge the source code of his program, believing that doing so would bring risk to his company's trade secrets. However, this case would prove to be much harder to solve for investigators; many of whom had not worked on a murder case in quite some time (if at all). The jailers are further accused in the lawsuit of fabricating their statements. Podcasts are listed here in order of appearance: In this Part 2 Episode: 1. He said his surgery was a success, but he needs time to heal before he can tour again. Not only was Keyes accustomed to Washington, having grown up in the northeastern corner of the state and serving at Ft. Lewis for a spell in the early 2000s (just south of Tacoma), but he did travel to the Seattle area on the weekend of Arpana's murder. To-date, Arpana Jinaga's murder remains unsolved. Its challenging in terms of race, in terms of policing, in terms of forensic science. The autopsy revealed that Arpana had been strangled and asphyxiated to death, roughly two days before her body was discovered. Missing from the scene entirely was Arpana's motorcycle, a Suzuki GS 500, which quickly became a highly-sought-after item for Redmond Police. Thats where a lot of the drama is for us, and where we wanted to investigate what had happened. The description they gave to police more closely resembled C.J. In fact, DNA from several men was found at the crime scene, including several of Arpana's neighbors and fellow partygoers. It was the culmination of a long and tortured relationship with the criminal justice system. C.J. The lawsuit alleges jailers Raul Galarza and Mark Solis began demeaning Alanis-Mejia and ridiculing him because he was crying over the death of his parents. He said that he met her briefly that night, and seemed to get along well with her; she briefly showed him photos from her bedroom computer, but that was about the extent of their interaction. According to this caller, the body had been found in an apartment just north of Marymoor Park, the scenic park and music venue east of Seattle, jutted up against Lake Sammamish. Most of the guests left Arpana's apartment for her neighbors just after 9:00 PM, but there were a lot of moving pieces that evening, and no real comprehensive way to determine who was where at what time. This is a series whose internal universe pretty much stops at the very edges of its specific case. In that case, police learned everything they needed to know from the crime scene itself. And who you can expect to see performing and presenting. Shaer: It might be different from other types of true-crime shows that people are used to where theres an agenda as to who ultimately committed the crime or who didnt. Now science has gotten very sophisticated. But what I hope people also get from this is that theres a lot of vitality in the podcast it starts with Arpana and her being an extremely alive, curious person. The series plays out in two halves: the first is a deep dive into the mystery of Arpana Jinagas murder, while the second walks through the events of Emanuel Fairs legal trials, which he endured while being wrongfully imprisoned for nine years. Emanuel Fair's trial would begin in February of 2017 - more than six years after he had originally been charged, and more than eight years after Arpana Jinaga's murder. The latest episode of Suspect highlights a reason that IMO isn't talked about enough -- the problems inherent in the jury system. For three and a half decades, her disappearance was a mystery - a riddle neither authorities . In it, she spoke about her love of working with computers and using them to innovate new and exciting things and spoke about working with companies in the future to do just that - innovate - before following in her father's footsteps to become a professor.
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