Bjorklund Sentencing
Wednesday, September 21, 1994 Page 3
Bjorklund likely to file appeals
By Matthew Woody
Senior Editor
Roger Bjorklund has become the newest
resident on death row at the Nebraska State
Penitentiary.
Lancaster County District Judge Donald
Endacott sentenced B jorklund to death on Tucs
day. nearly two years after he killed Candice
Harms.
But it will probably be much longer than two
years before his sentence is carried out, said
Nebraska Assistant Attorney General J. Kirk
Brown.
Bjorklund, who was taken to the penitentiary
directly from the courthouse after his sentenc
ing. has a long, eight-step appeals process to
exhaust before he can be executed. Brown said.
The attorney general’s office will begin pre
paring immediately for a mandatory appeal —
the first stage of that process. Brown said.
That appeal is required by state law. During
that stage, Bjorklund wil I bring up any issues he
believes may have improperly influenced his
sentence. Brown said.
Even if Bjorklund wanted to be executed
immediately. Brown said, he couldn't be killed
until the Nebraska Supreme Court confirms his
death sentence.
Bjorklund and his lawyers have 30 days to
file a notice for this appeal. Brown said. After
that they have 60 days to file their briefs. State
attorneys have an additional 30 days to file their
own briefs.
After all briefs have been filed, a date must
be set for arguments. The entire mandatory
direct appeal process will take between six
months and one year. Brown said.
If the court finalizes the sentence. Brown
said. Bjorklund has seven more rounds of ap
peals:
• Bjorklund can file a petition for a writ of
certiorari, asking the U.S. Supreme Court to
review the case.
• He can initiate a state-level post-convic
tion action, at which he can raise constitutional
questions or issues that he didn't have the op
portunity to bring up at the direct appeal.
Brown said that if Bjorklund had not won an
appeal at this point, he might hire new lawyers,
arguing (hat nis lack of success was caused by
------
their inabilities.
• Bjorklund can appeal to the Nebraska
Supreme Court, which is the final appeal at the
state level.
• He can again ask the U S. Supreme Court
to review his case.
• Bjorklund can file for a writ of habeas
corpus in Federal District court, bringing forth
issues about his federal constitutional rights.
• He can appeal to the federal appellate
court, the 8th U S. Circuit Court of Appeals,
based in St. Louis.
• He can petition the U S. Supreme Court
one more time to review the ease.
Fred Holbcrt, a University of Nebraska-Lin
coln associate professor of criminal justice,
said there were two issues Bjorklund would
likely raise during his appeals: the behavior of
Judge Endacott and possible preferential treat
ment for Harms' co-murderer, Scott Barney,
who was sentenced to life in prison.
“Even though Barney admitted his guilt and
provided information, they (he and Bjorklund)
still participated equally in the crime,” Holberl
said.
Gerik Parmele/DN
Lancaster County Attorney Gary Lacey Is surrounded by photographers and reporters at the County-City Building
Tuesday morning. Lacey prosecuted the case against Roger BJorklund, who raped and murdered UNL freshman
Candice Harms.
Roger
Bjorklun^
Case in review
Sept. 22,1992
Candice Harms leaves her
boyfriend's apartment and never
returns home. Police begin a 12
week search for the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln fresh man.
■
Dec. 6,1992
Harms is found after Scott Barney
confesses and leads police to her
body. She is found in a field south
east of Lincoln. Police learn Barney
and Bjorklund abducted, raped
and tortured Harms before killing
her with a bullet to the head.
■
Nov. 17,1993
A 12-member jury from Sidney finds
BJorklund guiity of first-degree
murder after afour-week trial. Tes
timony reveals the dime fulfilled
what prosecutors described as a sex
fantasy for Barney and BJorklund.
■
Sept. 20,1994
Lancaster County District Judge
Donald lindacott sentences
Bjorklu nd to die in the electric chair,
after numerous motions for a new
trial were overruled. BJorklund was
taken to death row at the Nebraska
State Penitentiary.
Bjorklund
Continued from Page 1
reasonable doubt that three of eight
aggravat i ng ci rcu msta nces exi s ted:
• Bjorklund had a substantial his
tory of serious assaultive or terroriz
ing activity.
• He committed the murder to con
ceal the crime and his involvement in
it
• The murder was especially hei
nous. atrocious and cnicl.
Endacott said the third aggravating
circumstancc alone was enough to jus
tify the death sentence.
“Candice Harms, only 18 years old.
chosen at random, cold, naked, help
less. humiliated, subjected to extreme
pain, uncertain as to her fate through
out those nightmare hours, must have
been filled with fear and terror beyond
imagining." he said
Endacott said Bjorklund's lawyers
established only one of seven mitigat
ing circumstances. They showed that
atlhctimcofthccrimc. mental illness
impaired Bjorklund's ability to ap
Krcciatc the wrongness of the crime,
esaid.
• And Endacott said the death pen
alty was not excessive or dispropor
tionate.
Bjorklund has argued (hat he should
not receive the death penalty because
his accomplice. Scott Barney, was
sentenced to life in prison.
But Endacott said (he state agreed
to not seek the death penalty against
Barney in a plea agreement. Barney
gave police information about the
murder, led authorities to Harms’ body
and plead guilty to first-degree mur
der.
Bjorklund did not try to provide
information about the murder in ex
change for a plea agreement, he said.
Sentence suits Bjorklund jurors
By Nick Wlltgen
Staff Reporter
Four Cheyenne County jurors re
turned to Lincoln Tuesday to witness
the final chapter ofa two-year story in
which they played a cnicial role.
Last November, the four were mem
bers of the jury that found Roger
Bjorklund guilty of first-degree mur
der in the September 1992 abduction,
rape and murder of Candice Harms.
Tuesday, they watched as Lancaster
County District Judge Donald
Endacott sentenced Bjorklund,
Jury foreman Roxanne Born of
Sidney and jurors Janet Volknicr.
Katherine Buttle and Cheryl Weiscr
traveled together to attend the sen
tencing.
“People asked why we came.” Born
told the Daily Nebraskan. “We thought
it would give us some closure. We just
wanted to know what the outcome
was.”
Doug Smith, speaking from his
home in Cheyenne County, said he
thought in this ease the penalty suited
the crime.
“That is just what I was hoping
he’d get,” he said. “That’s what he
deserves. 1 don’t know why it took so
* DN graphic
long to get it done; they should’ve
done it a year ago.”
Born said jurors didn't consider a
possible death sentence when they
deliberated the verdict last Novem
ber.
“He was really given a very fair
chance, I think.”
