DAYTON, Iowa (AP) — A man suspected of kidnapping two central Iowa girls last month before committing suicide told the state Parole Board in his three unsuccessful bids for early release that his treatment in prison had made him worthy of parole.
Michael Klunder argued in his failed appeals to the board in 2005, 2007 and 2008 that he no longer was dangerous and that parole would help him readjust to post-prison life better than if he were to be released without supervision after serving out his sentence, The Des Moines Register reported.
Klunder said in handwritten and typed appeals that his Christian faith and his treatment in prison made him "face the truth" about his past. Klunder was sentenced in 1992 to 41 years in prison for kidnapping a woman and two toddlers over a two-day period.
Klunder expressed confidence in his rehabilitation and in at least one appeal, he cited his work at a Newton golf course and his voluntary participation in a sex offender treatment program.
"There is no doubt my crimes were very serious and I deserved to come to prison. But to say there is no evidence that I have shown or proven myself to be released and become an active responsible citizen is completely untrue," he wrote.
Klunder also said he was confused by the board's decision to not personally interview him.
"I'd like them to see me as a man instead of as a file. To focus on who I am today instead of just what I did back then," he wrote.
In his 2008 appeal, he again noted his work at the golf course, and the fact that he was in minimum custody working among the public.
"What more proof does the board need?" he asked.
Klunder was never granted full parole, but he was eventually released in 2011 under provisions of the state's time-served law.
Police suspect Klunder abducted 15-year-old Kathlynn Shepard and a 12-year-old friend on May 20 in Dayton. The younger girl was able to escape, and Klunder later hanged himself.
Kathlynn remains missing. Some of her blood has been found, dampening hopes of finding the girl alive.
Authorities suspended their search of Kathylnn last week. But Gerard Meyers, assistant director of the Division of Criminal Investigation, said searches along the Des Moines River would likely resume Thursday or Friday. He said the boat searches by the Department of Natural Resources had been suspended because of the high water on the river, but the conditions have now improved.
Meyers stressed that the renewed search activity was not due to any significant new development in the case.
"At this point, it's still just a canvassing enterprise," he said.
Meyers said investigators also continue to look into whether Klunder was responsible for the kidnapping and slaying of two cousins last year in Evansdale, but he cautioned that it could take time to complete the lab testing, interviews and other work needed to make a determination. He and Black Hawk County Sheriff Tony Thompson both said the Evansdale police chief misspoke when he said investigators hoped to have an announcement this week.
"We're going all the way through it line by line and making sure that any element that we can evaluate for any correlation is being executed," he said. "It will continue until we have a firm determination as to whether or not there is any correlation."
Meyers also said that investigators had almost made general checks of databases of missing children in Iowa and nationally to see if Klunder could be involved in other cases, but "at this point, we don't have any information that would substantiate any other correlation."
Michael Klunder argued in his failed appeals to the board in 2005, 2007 and 2008 that he no longer was dangerous and that parole would help him readjust to post-prison life better than if he were to be released without supervision after serving out his sentence, The Des Moines Register reported.
Klunder said in handwritten and typed appeals that his Christian faith and his treatment in prison made him "face the truth" about his past. Klunder was sentenced in 1992 to 41 years in prison for kidnapping a woman and two toddlers over a two-day period.
Klunder expressed confidence in his rehabilitation and in at least one appeal, he cited his work at a Newton golf course and his voluntary participation in a sex offender treatment program.
"There is no doubt my crimes were very serious and I deserved to come to prison. But to say there is no evidence that I have shown or proven myself to be released and become an active responsible citizen is completely untrue," he wrote.
Klunder also said he was confused by the board's decision to not personally interview him.
"I'd like them to see me as a man instead of as a file. To focus on who I am today instead of just what I did back then," he wrote.
In his 2008 appeal, he again noted his work at the golf course, and the fact that he was in minimum custody working among the public.
"What more proof does the board need?" he asked.
Klunder was never granted full parole, but he was eventually released in 2011 under provisions of the state's time-served law.
Police suspect Klunder abducted 15-year-old Kathlynn Shepard and a 12-year-old friend on May 20 in Dayton. The younger girl was able to escape, and Klunder later hanged himself.
Kathlynn remains missing. Some of her blood has been found, dampening hopes of finding the girl alive.
Authorities suspended their search of Kathylnn last week. But Gerard Meyers, assistant director of the Division of Criminal Investigation, said searches along the Des Moines River would likely resume Thursday or Friday. He said the boat searches by the Department of Natural Resources had been suspended because of the high water on the river, but the conditions have now improved.
Meyers stressed that the renewed search activity was not due to any significant new development in the case.
"At this point, it's still just a canvassing enterprise," he said.
Meyers said investigators also continue to look into whether Klunder was responsible for the kidnapping and slaying of two cousins last year in Evansdale, but he cautioned that it could take time to complete the lab testing, interviews and other work needed to make a determination. He and Black Hawk County Sheriff Tony Thompson both said the Evansdale police chief misspoke when he said investigators hoped to have an announcement this week.
"We're going all the way through it line by line and making sure that any element that we can evaluate for any correlation is being executed," he said. "It will continue until we have a firm determination as to whether or not there is any correlation."
Meyers also said that investigators had almost made general checks of databases of missing children in Iowa and nationally to see if Klunder could be involved in other cases, but "at this point, we don't have any information that would substantiate any other correlation."
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