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| Quick Quotes about Kassidy Bortner and Chad Evans and his case, and justice and the legal system.
This Web Page is in six sections: 1. Short Quotes in chronological order about the case by those involved in the investigation and wrongful conviction of Chad Evans. 2. Short Quotes in chronological order about several specific injuries and bruises to Kassidy Bortner. 3. Recalled words from Kassidy Bortner, reverse chronologically. 4. Quotes from people, beginning in 2010 who have joined the Campaign for Justice for Chad Evans. 5. Short quotes from a variety of sources which are thought to apply to this tragic case. 6. Favorite quotes from Chad Evans, about justice and other subjects.
1. Short Quotes from the case. "Holy shit. We should take her to the hospital." Chad Evans to Amanda Bortner, Friday, 28 October, after seeing Kassidy's two bumps on the back of her head, and sickness from dehydration, upon returning on Saturday, 28 October, from Jeff Marshall's double-overnight babysitting. "She is acting much better now. If she isn't better in the morning, I'll take her." Amanda Bortner to Chad. She was noting that Kassidy was in worse condition a few hours earlier when Jeff brought her home, but that since then she had improved. [letter from Chad Evans to Morrison Bonpasse 26 Feb 2010. p. 1] "What's happening to my baby?" Amanda Bortner to Chad, while holding clumps of Kassidy's hair that were coming from her head, a few days after the 28 October return from Jeff Marshall's. [letter from Chad Evans to Morrison Bonpasse 26 Feb 2010. p. 1] "Did the baby fall or something?... I feel like such a bad mom. .... How could this happen to me?... I don't feel like living anymore." [Amanda Bortner, in the Kittery Police Dept. "Chief's Room immediately after being told of the death of Kassidy. As reported by MSP Detective "What am I going to do now? I had a baby when I was young, and now I've lost a baby when I'm young.... I should have taken the baby to the doctor.. She was sick, and I gave her Tylenol. It's all my fault." [Amanda Bortner, to Kittery Police secretary Virginia Grover, immediately after being told of Kassidy's death. Report of interview of Virginia Grover by Det. Angela Blodgett. Evid 49-50] "Oh, my God. I can't believe this." [Amanda Bortner, police interview, 9 November 2000, page 13] "She [Kassidy] was really tired and like I don't know why I didn't think of her being sick, but she was really tired. [She wore] a brand new outfit. A fleece sweatshirt, fleece pants. I put on her Elmo slippers because I couldn't find her sneakers and her winter jacket and a hat." [Amanda Bortner, police interview, 9 November 2000, page 10] "She has bruises on her body?" [Amanda Bortner, police interview, 9 November 2000, page 12, in response to statement by Maine State Police Detective Angela Blodgett, "She,[....] what the report that we're getting, is that she has a lot of bruises on her.] "She had bruises on her body? They said that?" [Amanda Bortner, a few seconds later." "Everything else will work, you know, don't think about all of these issues at once.... Deal with them one at a time. And call us. We solve problems. That's what we do." [Maine State Police Detective Angela Blodgett, to Amanda Bortner, op cit page 17] "Me and Jen should have probibly [sic] done something but you would have never thought it was this bad." Jeff Marshall [handwritten "Statement" to Kittery Police Dept. 9 Nov. 2000.] "He's not the best baby[sitter]. He doesn't play with the kid, you know what I mean? The kid will watch TV all day and Jeff will watch TV. He's not the best babysitter, but he's not like, you know what I mean, he doesn't treat the kid bad or anything like that. I've never seen him treat the kid bad." [Jennifer Bortner Conley, referring to Jeff's care of her niece, Kassidy Bortner. Police interview, 9 November 2000, page 32] "What did he do to my baby, Chad?" Jacqueline Conley, grandmother of Kassidy Bortner, to Chad Evans, when greeting him in the lobby of the Kittery Police Station. "Go ahead, look in my trucks... you're not going to find much,...and you can talk to my neighbors. You can talk to my friends. You can talk to anybody." Jeff Marshall [page 67 of interview of Jeff Marshall, Thursday, 9 November.] "And what I'm telling you is is [sic] after talking with everybody here, our investigation clearly indicates that you are the cause of these injuries." Maine State Police Detective, Lance McCleish, to Chad Evans. "Ahh, no way." Chad Evans. [Page 91 of transcript of interview of Chad Evans on Thursday evening, 9 November 2000, approximately 8 hours after Kassidy Bortner's death.] Chad Evans: "Let me explain something to you." Det. Lance McCleish: "No I don't want you to explain." Chad Evans: "So what I'm trying to tell you though is why ..." Det. Lance McCleish: "I don't want you to explain." Chad Evans and Maine State Police Detective Lance McCleish.[Page 119 of transcript of interview of Chad Evans on Thursday evening, 9 November 2000.] "I hope you guys investigate and talk to everybody that I know about what kind of a person I am." The last words said by Chad Evans at his interview. [Page 129 of transcript of interview of Chad Evans on Thursday evening, 9 November 2000.] "She hasn't lost her kid. The child's dead. No one can bring that child back. Someone is responsible." ["Maine State Police Detective Jeff Smith to Jennifer Bortner Conley, at page 72 of her interview, 10 November 2000.] "[Dr. Greenwald] stated that Kassidy died of blunt head trauma with the possibility of Shaken Baby Syndrome. Greenwald stated that the optic nerve appeared to have hemorrhaged. The abdomen had hemorrhaging, which is a deep injury. This injury is definitely an impact injury." [Summary of Interview of Dr. Margaret Greenwald, Maine Medical Examiner, by MSP Detective Erik Baker, 10 November 2000.] "Jeff's taken a poly, Jeff's taken a polygraph." [MSP Det. Erik Baker to Jeremy Hinton 14 November, page 18 of interview.] "Jeff's taken a polygraph test." [NHSP Trooper Jill Rockey, to Jeremy Hinton ibid., page 18 of interview.] "Jeff is going up to take a polygraph today. And I'm gonna guarantee you that's gonna eliminate him as a suspect." [NHSP Trooper Jill Rockey, to Jeremy Hinton, ibid., page 21.] "He's taking it and I'm sure he's going to pass, but I didn't mention he has.... I didn't say he's passed. I said he's taking it and he's probably going to pass.... If he fails it we're going to deal with it in that manner. But I can tell you right now from everything that I see if he fails it I'd be very, very, very surprised. Like I said, I've done this long enough to know." [MSP Det. Erik Baker, to Jeremy Hinton, ibid. page 21] "And we believe he's going to pass." [NHSP Trooper Jill Rockey, to Jeremy Hinton, ibid. page 21] [Jeff Marshall initially agreed to take a lie detector test on 14 November, but he went to the Alfred, Maine State Police Barracks for the exam, and declined.] "And I figured, well, she got hit with a baseball, and then she fell out of the car, obviously, what you think that the person will do the right thing, as far as, if there's something wrong with a child, you know. You know, do what I did, as far as call the med, medics, or you know what I mean?" Jeff Marshall [Interview, 16 November 2000, page 42. Disc. page 1666.] "...Amanda called her mother up yesterday and says, 'Can I make any food for the, for the funeral?' I'm thinking to Jen, I'm saying, 'This is the mother. All right, her last thing on her God damned mind is to be making food for a funeral for her child.' This is, yeah, it makes me sick. I, I get so, if I could take those two [Chad and Amanda] and sit them in an electric chair right now, I'd grab them both and, like I said, do me a favor, bring them down to the woods somewhere and, you know, turn your back and Marshall law." Jeff Marshall [Interview, 16 November 2000, page 50. Disc. page 1674.] "This is bullshit." Chad Evans, upon his arrest at his home on 16 November 2000, to the arresting officer, New Hampshire State Trooper, William Graham. [Graham Report. Evidence. page 230] "I want to answer every question you have. I want to be as helpful as I can... I'm not trying to be a pecker head. I want to help you in any way I can. I want to answer any question....I know when I went through that last questioning, ... I got too many things going through my head. I'd rather. There's two of you. There's one of me. I just feel comfortable answering any question with him [my attorney] sitting beside me..." Chad Evans to NHSP Detective Jill Rockey and MSP Detective Jeff Linscott just after his arrest on 16 November 2000 as he explained that he couldn't answer any questions without his attorney present. [Evidence page 347] Chad had already interviewed with the police for three hours on the day Kassidy died, trying to be helpful, but even then they were already convinced that he was responsible for Kassidy's death. "Should I speak with my heart or with my head?" Chad Evans to Jennifer Saunders a few weeks before her 5 April 2001 story in Foster's Daily Democrat, "Jail not likely for Evans before trial - One hearing continued; another delayed until after murder case" This was Chad's only statement to a reporter during the entire case. See CHAD'S 2010 RECOLLECTION OF CONVERSATION. "I have no charges against me, but I agreed to things w/ the police that weren't true. And I just want to tell the truth at the [Chad Evans] trial. - Thanks!" Amanda Bortner [in 9 May 2001 application to the Strafford County Court to appoint counsel for her.] "Hi Amanda, we haven't talked in a while." [Sgt James White to Amanda Bortner, when approaching her, unannounced, at her place of work, Pizza Hut in Brattleboro, VT, 14 August 2001. Sgt. White's Summary. Evid. page 1959] "Chad didn't do it. You twisted around everything I said." [Amanda Bortner in response to Sgt. White. Same document, above.] "Thoughts: I really miss Kyle. When will this nightnare be over? Let the jury see the facts that I had nothing to do with this and let me go home. Chad Evans [Personal Journal entry, 14 September 2001.] "Travis Hunt was told that there is medical evidence showing the injuries Kassidy Bortner sustained would make it impossible for her to be 'chipper' in the bath tub or be able to eat a popsicle. Travis Hunt explained that he was telling the truth and that she was playing in the bathtub and she was eating a popsicle when he saw her. Travis Hunt stated that if Kassidy Bortner looked like the autopsy photographs when he saw her in the bathtub he would have called the police." Rochester Police Detective Paul Callaghan. [in his report of his 31 October 2001 interview of Travis Hunt, together with AAG Simon Brown and Will Delker.] "When you love somebody so much, what choice do you have." Mary Bullard, a friend of Amanda Bortner and Chad Evans in response to New Hampshire State Police Sergeant James White's question of whether Mary knew that a condition of Chad Evans' bail release was that he not have contact with Amanda. [See James White report of 20 November 2001 interview with Mary Bullard. [Discovery pages 3211-12] "I just want the truth to come out." Jeff Marshall, at trial of Chad Evans. [Page 270 of transcript of Chad's trial, 6 December 2001. Cross-examination by Mark Sisti.] Stating her "extreme concern" Judge Tina Nadeau stated to Amanda Bortner at a hearing to consider revoking her bail, "You are not taking these cases seriously. These cases involve the death of your daughter.... You have refused to accept the culpability of your boyfriend." [14 September 2002 Union Leader article, "Mother of murdered girl remains free on bail."] "The truth will come out." Amanda Borter [When asked by a newspaper reporter for her reaction to the guilty verdict in her trial. 25 November 2002.] [Foster's Daily Democrat, 26 November 2002, "Bortner family, prosecution "There is no doubt that any future contact should be precluded," [Assistant Attorney General David] Ruoff said. "I would characterize this relationship as dangerous." David Ruoff. when seeking to revoke Amanda Bortner's bail after showing that Amanda Bortner and Chad Evans (in prison) had talked by phone. ["Bortner gets jail time: Slain tot's mom behind bars after bail violations" 24 December 2002, Foster's Daily Democrat by Jennifer L. Saunders] "You are such a great father. You really are. The best father in the world. Kyle is the way he is becasue of you.... I love you so much. You're my world, my everything, my soulmate 4ever! I love you Chad Emery Evans. Never forget it! Pray hard for the truth to set you free so you can come home to where you belong, and we can get justice for Kassidy. I love you!!" [Amanda Bortner in a Father's Day card to Chad Evans. approx. 2005.]
2. Short Quotes about several injuries and bruises to Kassidy Bortner. (in Chronological order by the date of the injury or observation) 21 October 2000 (approximately) Spanking by Jeff Marshall "Yeah, I spanked her so hard, my hand stung." Jeff Marshall, reportedly, to Chad Evans on 25 October 2000 when Chad called him after Amanda Bortner showed Chad the black and blue bruises on Kassidy's buttocks. "You dumb shit. She is a baby and you hit her so hard through her diaper that it caused bruises. If you ever touch her again, I will beat your ass." Chad Evans, responding to Jeff's statement, as Chad recalled it. [letter from Chad Evans to Morrison Bonpasse 23 March 2010. p. 1] "Yeah, and I was there, you know. It was like a little swat and it wasn't even hard." [Jennifer Bortner Conley, police interview, 9 November 2000, page 32, responding to Detective Scott Harakles' question, "Just the one time you saw him spank the baby and that's it?"]
28 October 2000 (approximately) Falling out of Jeff Marshall's truck "Well, um, about 2 weeks ago, she, Jeff was babysitting her and he brought her back and he told me that she fell out of the truck.... and she had a bump on her head. And, um, she came home that day and she was really sick. She was like dehyderated and she wanted drinks and stuff, so I gave her Pedialyte and I gave her Tylenol and I kept giving her water to get some fluid in her and the next day she was fine." [Amanda Bortner, police interview, 9 November 2000, page 9] 31 October 2000. Amanda Bortner called MSP Detective Angela Blodgett with the recollection "that on or about 10/31/00, Kassidy fell forward in her car and hit her head on the back of the driver seat in Amanda's vehicle. This occurred because the belt holding Kassidy's car seat was not 'clicked all the way in' and Amanda had to hit her brakes suddenly to avoid a collision. Kassidy did not cry or seem injured after the incident." [Report by Det. Angela Blodgett. Evid p. 45.] 5 November 2000, Sunday. "Um, she had a bruise, I don't know, on her cheek maybe... just a light, sort of off color tannish. [Brandon Harvey, during police interview 9 November 2000] 5-6 November 2000 (approximately) Hitting head on glass table in living room "Yeah. She hit the corner of the table. She's really, she's really like disoriented. She falls, well, she fell, a lot. But she's always been like that, klutz, kind of, too.... I was there for like the glass table in the living room.... Probably like three (3) or four (4) days ago." [Amanda Bortner, police interview, 9 November 2000, page 12 ???? 2000 Hitting head on glass table in kitchen, approximately... __ November 2000 Scabs on the bottom of her feet. "No, actually, I saw that, and, um, she came home from Jeff's house and he said that Jeff and Jen thought that because there's like nails sticking up from the bottom of their floor, so that's why I brought over, brought her, put her in slippers also." [Amanda Bortner, police interview, 9 November 2000, page 11, responding to question from Maine State Police Detective Angela Blodgett, "Did she burn her foot or something?"] 7 November 2000 (approximately) Jeff Marshall stepping on Kassidy's foot. "... he [Jeff Marshall] tripped over her the other day, like 2 days ago, and she hurt her leg and she was walking funny and... he told me that when I picked her up that she's walking funny because he had tripped over her. She was standing right behind him and I was like okay, and I like, was feeling her legs and I was asking her if it hurt because usually she says, 'Ow' and she didn't say 'Ow' or anything." [Amanda Bortner, police interview, 9 November 2000, page 10]
3. Recalled words from Kassidy Bortner, in reverse chronological order. "Kitty, Kitty, Kitty" [Jennifer Bortner Conley police interview, 9 November 2000, page 69. Stated by Kassidy when playing with Jeff Marshall's and Jennifer's cat, Tobey, on the bed where Kassidy was sitting, under the covers. These were perhaps the last words spoken by Kassidy. as none were recalled by Jeff in any statements or police reports.] "Bye Bye" [Chad Evans police interview, 9 November 2000, page 25. These were the last words Kassidy said to Chad Evans, as Amanda drove Kyle to day care and Kassidy to Jeff Marshall's.] "Drink." [Amanda Bortner, police interview, 9 November 2000, page 13. Stated by Kassidy when Amanda was giving her breakfast on the day she died.] "Momma." [Amanda Bortner, police interview, 9 November 2000, page 13. Stated by Kassidy, generally in her later weeks. She also called Amanda, "Mandy."] "Gum, Mama." [Chad had coin-operated gumball machine and he and Amanda would give Kassidy coins and help her turn the knob. She would put her hand underneath the machine to catch the gum, and say.... The machine was a favorite for other kids, too.]
"6, 7, 8, 9" [Amanda Bortner, police interview, 9 November 2000, page 9. Stated by Kassidy when Kyle prompted her with "1,2,3,4,5..." several days before her death.] "Where's Chad?" [Kassidy would say this to Amanda Bortner when they were home, in the weeks before Amanda began working for Old Navy. Once, Amanda called Chad at his work and let him hear Kassidy ask this question. From Chad letter, 2010.] "ball," "wall," "doggie," "Kato," "jump," "cookie," "juice," "Mandy," "nose," "ear," "hair," "lips," "teeth," "eyes," "head," "belly," "baby," "pop," (for freeze pop or popsicle), "door," "table," "run," "bird," "soda," "please," "kiss," "hug," "Tinky Winky," "doll." [Words spoken by Kassidy, and recalled in Chad letter, 19 August 2010.] 4. Quotes from people, beginning in 2010 who have joined the Campaign for Justice for Chad Evans.
"In 2000 when Kassidy died, no one I knew who also knew Chad believed he was guilty. I put my trust in the court and the reporting from Foster's Daily Democrat (that concentrated on Kassidy's injuries over and over again.) Only now, after spending hours and hours on Chad's website do I go with my first gut reaction. NO WAY! People around me get uptight when I speak about this case, as if I shouldn't be able to look at this tragedy objectively because I have four children of my own. I can only explain it as I have a strong drive inside me to help prove the truth. It is consuming me!!" [Becky Boudreau worked for Chad at a McDonald's in the 1990's, and resumed a friendship with him, and joined the Campaign after reading an article about the case and Campaign. She wrote this in a 2010 email.]
"Mom. I don't think I can help Chad," said five year old Aubree, daughter of Becky Boudreau, after the October 12, 2011 meeting of the Rochester chapter of the Chad Evans Wrongly Convicted Committee "Why is that?" responded Becky. "Because I don't have a key," answered Aubree. [However, the adults have the keys, and they should be turned.] "As an exonerated man,I know what its like to be innocent, and watch your life slip away behind the walls of lies and entrapment,Chad stay strong! True justice is coming my brother." of the "Central Park Five." He knows a lot about wrongful conviction.
Raymond Santana [See above] On his Facebook Page Troy Davis was executed by the State of Georgia on September 21, 2011 for a murder he claimed he did not commit. Thousands of people around the world mobilized to support his claim of innocence, but to no avail. See the Wikipedia entry, TROY DAVIS. Sean Bell was killed without cause by police in New York City in 2006. Approximately 50 bullets were shot at him. In 2010, the City of New York and Bell's family negotiated a $7.2 million settlement of the claim for wrongful death. 5. Short quotes, from a variety of sources, which are thought to apply to this tragic case, in chronological order. "As we have previously noted, it is the prosecutor’s duty to seek justice, not merely to convict. State v. Bujnowski, 130 N.H. 1, 5 (1987)." New Hampshire Supreme Court in State v. Leveille (August 19, 2010) " 'We can recognize that the perfection of justice will always remain an elusive goal,' said Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Charles Canaday, who helped launch the group. 'But that reality can never be an excuse for relaxing our efforts to protect the innocent.' '' "Florida Innocence Commission seeks to prevent wrongful convictions" Miami Herald, 11 Sept. 2010. "Government has perhaps no greater duty than to protect its citizens, and we all pay dearly for that service. From the crime scene to the courtroom, there is simply no excuse for not ensuring the seamless delivery of justice." Boston Herald, editorial, "Crime Lab Crisis threatens us all", 17 July 2007. "I believe that the act of freeing one innocent person wrongly imprisoned is profoundly more important than all the criminals we arrest, prosecute, and convict. .... The job of police and prosecutors is not merely to make arrests or seek convictions, nor is it to preserve an indictment or a conviction at all costs. Rather, our job -- at all stages of the process, from investigation to arrest to indictment to trial to appeal and to the review of new information that surfaces after a conviction -- is to seek the truth. When we determine that justice has not been served by an indictment or a conviction, we have an obligation -- legal, moral, and ethical -- to act decisively to correct the injustice." Suffolk County [Mass.] District Attorney Daniel Conley in Boston Globe, 3/19/04 The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie: deliberate, continued, and dishonest; but the myth: persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic." John Fitzgerald Kennedy He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. "Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter." Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. "The most odious of all oppressions are those which mask as justice." Robert H. Jackson, U.S. Attorney General, Nuremburg War Trials prosecutor, U.S. Supreme Court Justice, 1941-1954. [The quote appeared in the Union Leader on 21 January 2010, and was clipped and saved by Chad Evans.] "There is always an easy solution to every human problem - neat, plausible and wrong." H.L. Mencken. [The quote appeared in the Union Leader on 21 January 2010, and was clipped and saved by Chad Evans.] "Justice, sir, is the great interest of man on earth. It is the ligament which holds civilized beings and civilized nations together." Daniel Webster, New Hampshire citizen, U.S. Senator, and U.S. Secretary of State. 1782-1852. "There is nothing so powerful as the truth, and often nothing so strange." Daniel Webster, New Hampshire citizen, U.S. Senator, and U.S. Secretary of State. 1782-1852. [The first part of the quote appears daily in the Union Leader, and was clipped and saved by Chad Evans.] "Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are." — Benjamin Franklin
6. Favorite quotes from Chad Evans, about justice and other subjects. Click for list of Chad Evans' favorite quotes, as culled from his collection in March 2010. From the 2009 "KYLE'S MERIT BADGE TO MANHOOD" are 36 pages of Chad's favorite quotes. "Never doubt that a group of thoughtful, committed individuals could change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. just and humane place. Indeed, they already have." IN MEMORIAM section of its website.] "Very few physical findings or even constellations of findings have one and only one explanation." 1999 NH Attorney General Manual: CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT. (page 34) "Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored." [Aldous Huxley. Forwarded in Letter 169, 21 July 2010] "Prison cells ought to be for people we should be afraid of, not for people we're merely mad at." 169, 21 July 2010]] All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident. to Chad by Chad Evans Wrongly Convicted Committee member, Seacoast Chapter, Shawn Maccabee. September 2010] "People will forget what you said, People will forget what you did, But people will never forget how you made them feel." [Maya Angelou. Chad Evans stated this is his favorite, among those on his list] "Prison has taught me that real, lifetime friendship is a very rare thing." [from page 148 of the book, In the Name of the Father, by Gerry Conlon read by Chad Evans, July, 2010] "Some people may find this hard to believe, but at times, and especially at the beginning, I found my innocence a very heavy burden in prison. More exactly, I found it an EMBARRASSMENT, very difficult to just up and say, 'I shouldn't be here. I'm innocent of what they claim I've done.' " [from page 149 in the book, In the Name of the Father, by Gerry Conlon read by Chad Evans, July, 2010]
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