New York Times:  Interview of Bruce Barket on Success in the Tankleff Homicide Case

In a feature story, the New York Times interviewed Mr. Barket as on his investigation and handling of the Martin Tankleff case and the conduct of the prosecutors. Based upon the work of Mr. Barket and his team, Mr. Tankleff had been freed from jail after 17 years of incarceration after being convicted of killing his parents over 20 years ago. The case was subsequently dismissed.

The Times noted that Mr. Barket had "harsh words for the prosecutorial team that sent Mr. Tankleff to prison based on a confession obtained through trickery — Mr. Tankleff was told by police interrogators that his father had awoken from a coma and implicated him as the killer. The prosecution refused to investigate the possibility that the killings were ordered by a disgruntled business associate of Seymour Tankleff’s.

“It’s something the district attorney should have done four years ago,” Mr. Barket said. “I gave him 12 witnesses who said somebody else did the murders, but Suffolk had no good finger on the pulse of this case.

“It’s been almost like an article of faith for them to maintain, against all logic and reason, that Marty Tankleff killed his parents. But we don’t try our criminal cases on faith; we try them on the facts. I hope this is an eye-opening case. I hope jurors recognize that when they hear a ‘confession,’ they should not jump to the conclusion it was true.”

Read the full article.