Delayed Justice

There were more than 170 Wackenhut guards who rolled through tiny Holland during the Chemetron strike of 1979.  Some of them were there for less than a week.  Most of those guards did nothing wrong.  But there was a core group that took part in the planning, abduction, assault, rape and murder of Janet Chandler.

The following lists of names came from the mouths of witnesses during the 2008 trial of Arthur Carlton Paiva, Freddie Bass Parker, Anthony Eugene Williams, and James Cleophus “Bubba” Nelson.  They were found guilty and joined Robert Michael Lynch and Laurie Ann Swank as convicts.

There may have been more than 24 people who had something to do with the murder party.  That’s a lot of people to keep quite for 28 years.  And there were a lot of names uttered on the witness stand, people who were mentioned as having something to do with the planning, abduction, and rape and murder. 

People who either place themselves at the planning session(s) and/or at the party in the Chemetron Guest House, were convicted of being there and taking part, or who have been identified from the witness stand as at the planning session(s) and/or at the party in the Chemetron Guest House:

Laurie Ann Swank (pled guilty)

Robert Michael Lynch (pled guilty)

Arthur Carlton Paiva (convicted)

Freddie Bass Parker (convicted)

James Cleophus “Bubba” Nelson (convicted)

Anthony Eugene Williams (convicted)

Ronald Raymond Wirick (at planning session and party by his own admission; at post-party boasting session per Marsman; seen raping Janet per Ruiz—something he denies)

Patty Bright Ward (at party by her own admission)

Glenn L. Johnson (at planning session and abduction per Marsman, at party by his own admission)

Cheryl Ruiz (at planning session per Marsman and her own admission, at party by her own admission, and at post-party boasting session per Marsman and by her own admission)

Harry Dean Keith (there by his own admission and testimony of others)

Diane Griffin Marsman (at planning session, party and post-party boasting session by her own admission)

Willie Bass (at party per Johnson, Ward, in the rape room per Wirick and Robert Lynch)

Matt Manion (at party per Ward, perhaps at party per identification by photo to police by Wirick)

Robin Clonkey (at planning per Swank, in rape room per Ruiz, seen raping Janet per Swank; there per Ward)

Avery Grant (perhaps at party per identification by photo to police by Ward, at party per Wirick) 

Tim Smith (at party per Ward, seen raping Janet per Wirick) 

Vinnie Crnich (perhaps at party per identification by photo to police by Ward; seen raping Janet per Wirick)

Mike Chandler (Gerald Michael Chandler–-no relation to Janet) (in planning session, at abduction, and perhaps riding to party with Marsman and Ruiz, also at post-party boasting session per Marsman)

Sharon Thorpe (at party per Ward)

Mark Henning (at party per identification by photo to police by Ward)

Ron Cekoric (at party per identification by photo to police by Ward)

Vaughn Banks (at party selling marijuana per Ward)

Liz Schaftenaar (planning per Swank and Marsman; no one puts her at the party)

Duane Halverson (planning per Swank, at party per Johnson).

This is fussy work and if on watching the witness testimony you find that I have made any error or omission, please let me know. 

Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Donna Pendergast has reminded us that being at the scene of a crime is not a crime in itself.  Each is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.