Detroit News Editorial Page Editor Comments on Widlak Case
Widlak case doesn’t fit into neat box
From The Detroit News
Nolan Finlay
Suicide is the hardest way to lose a loved one. Nobody wants to think that the person they cherish was in so much pain he took his own life. So it would be easy to dismiss the resistance of the wife and children of David Widlak to accepting that his death might have been a suicide as the desperate response of a family avoiding reality.
Widlak is the Grosse Pointer who went missing Sept. 19 from the Mount Clemens bank he headed and whose body was discovered a month later floating in Lake St. Clair. His wife, Anne, children and step-children reject the finding by Macomb County Sheriff Mark Hackel and coroner Daniel Spitz that his death was likely a suicide.
Widlak’s body had a bullet hole in the back of the neck, and his handgun was found in the water nearby. His Community Bank was troubled — which small bank isn’t today? — and the sheriff says that some of the things Widlak did on the day he died, including deleting computer files and the history of his GPS unit, suggest a man trying to erase his life.
It adds up to suicide. But then it doesn’t.
I knew Dave Widlak, not well, and certainly not well enough to say whether he was suicidal. Besides, I’ve had enough experience with that disease to understand that sometimes people surprise you. But something about this case has bothered me from the beginning, and it’s not just the evidence. Put the facts on a scale and it could tip either way.
My uneasiness stems from Hackel’s determination from Day One to make the Widlak case about anything except murder. The day of the disappearance, the sheriff appeared convinced that Widlak was a walk-away, a troubled man looking to escape. The fact that he left his car in the parking lot, and that his office was in disarray, didn’t affect that opinion.
When the body was found in the lake four miles away from the office, Hackel spoke right away about how fit Widlak was and that walking that distance wouldn’t be beyond his capability. Why someone would walk four miles and out into a chilly lake to kill himself, well, who knows?
Then there’s the botched autopsy. Spitz missed the bullet and bullet hole when he examined the body and ruled cause of death as inconclusive. I guess that could happen to anyone.
In the interest of disclosure, when I heard Spitz’s ruling I suggested to the family that they get an independent autopsy. They requested one, and just moments before it was to be cremated, the body was sent to Oakland County Medical Examiner Ljubisa Dragovic. And how about that? He not only found the bullet hole, but sent the family a note saying Widlak was killed execution style.
Rather than spur Hackel in a new direction, namely looking for a murderer, the revelations seemed to annoy him. I have no idea why he appeared so unenthusiastic about the Widlak case. Maybe he saw it as a distraction to his campaign for Macomb County executive, a job he won in November and will assume next week. But Hackel appeared to have come to his conclusion about what happened to Widlak right away, and then shaped the investigation to fit.
The family has hired private investigators to pursue a case the Sheriff’s Office clearly wants shed of. They have no choice. Widlak’s death doesn’t yet fit into the neat box Hackel has tried to cram it in to.
Channel 7 coverage of Widlak case
Managing Partner Todd Flood on Channel 7 after a press conference at the Flood, Lanctot, Connor, Stablein, PLLC offices in Royal Oak. Flood shares his toughts on the the death of David Widlak. WXYZ TV’s Anu Prakash reports.
David Gorcyca comments on Westland murder prosecution
Flood Lanctot Connor Stablein PLLC attorney David Gorcyca spoke with Fox 2 recently regarding a murder case in Westland in which the prosecutor is attempting to prove murder without the body. The former Oakland County Prosecuter shares his thoughts on the matter.
Todd Flood on Fox 2 speaks out on Widlak Case
Managing Partner Todd Flood on Fox 2 after a press conference at the Flood, Lanctot, Connor, Stablein PLLC offices in Royal Oak. Flood shares his thoughts on the the death of David Widlak.
Todd Flood on WJR on Widlak case
Our own Todd Flood talks about status of his investigation of the death of David Widlak on the Paul W. Smith Show on WJR Radio. To listen to the entire interview click on the link below.
FLCS to become Allen Park City Attorney
Flood Lanctot Connor Stablein PLLC will become the Allen Park City Attorney effective January 1, 2011. In an article in the December 18th addition of the Times-Herald outgoing city lawyer Anthony Guerriero said, ““I’ve worked with them (FLCS) extensively over the years in many capacities on both sides of the bench, and I can assure you they’re not going to lack for anything….” Guerriero went on to say in the article he has “the utmost respect” for the firm.
Click Here to read the entire Times-Hearld story written by Peter Jurich
Wall Street Journal Reports “Police Sift Through Clues: a Bank, a Body, a Bullet”
The the mysterious disappearance and death of David Widlak has garnered local media attention since the banker’s disappearance in September of this year. The curiousness of the case is now attracting national media attention. In a recent article the Wall Street Journal gave their explanation of the facts surrounding the Widlak investigation.
Macomb Daily Widlak Update
Attorney Todd Flood has assembled a team of former prosecutors, retired FBI agents, and a forensic psychiatrist to work on their own investigation into the mystery surrounding the death of David Widlak. Sheriff Hackel recently stated in an article with the Macomb Daily, that while his investigators are not willing to share their information with the Flood team, they are more than willing to listen to any information Flood has to offer.
Todd Flood Works With Private Investigators And Bank To Investigate Widlak Death
On Sunday, November 28, 2010 Crain’s Detroit reported that Todd Flood has been working with private investigators and Community Central Bank (CCB) to investigate the unsolved death of David Widlak. Last week Flood walked a route between CCB and the watery area where Widlak’s body was found. Flood was able to surmise that because of a number of factors, such as Widlak’s fear of water and the entry point of the bullet in his body, homicide should not be ruled out. Flood continues to work with various private investigators to follow the facts to a proper conclusion.
See full article at Crain’s Detroit
Flood Law Attorneys Hired To Supplement Suspicious Death Investigation
Banker’s family hires team to investigate his mysterious death
By JOE SWICKARD
See Article in Detroit Free Press
While the debate about David Widlak’s puzzling death swings between suicide and murder, his family and an array of blue-chip allies have hired a powerhouse law firm to find out who put a bullet in the back of the banker’s head.
“It appears Mr. Widlak was murdered,” said Todd Flood, a former prosecutor whose Royal Oak-based office has played roles in some of the area’s biggest criminal cases, including Kwame Kilpatrick’s state charges and the misconduct allegations against retired Wayne County Circuit Judge Mary Waterstone. (more…)
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