Investigator awarded for solving old assault case

March 04, 2009

By Gary Raham
The Wellington

 

Detective John Newhouse smiles easily, almost with an air of shyness, but he has a strong handshake and projects a feeling of confidence that lets a person know he’s there to help.

He is.

What’s not immediately evident is the dedication and persistence he brings to the task — qualities that recently earned him a Meritorious Service Award from the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office.

When he read the police reports about an assault case against a 65-year-old woman in her home in Wellington (Colorado) in October 2005, he said to himself, “Sure, I can do this.”

He’d been assigned the case to put a pair of fresh eyes on it, not uncommon in police work. On average, Newhouse said, investigators typically solve about 60 percent of their cases. In his 37 years of law enforcement experience his personal best clearance rate was 76 percent. When he took on this particular case March 5, 2007, he already had a decade of experience with the Larimer County department and knew many individuals involved in local crime.

“It takes a couple of years to learn who the repeat offenders are,” Newhouse said. “Pooling information with different agencies — that’s what’s successful in solving crimes.”

The crime was scary. A large male wearing a florescent green Halloween mask sprayed his victim with mace when she came to the door of her home, pushed his way inside, and began beating her on the head with the end of the can. The attacker got scared and left when the victim yelled for her husband to come help.

Garrett Lejeune, now 22, was an early suspect in the case. He had a record for assaults and burglaries and had harassed the victim in relatively minor ways before. Initially, Lejeune had an alibi that placed him in Fort Collins during the time of the crime. The only DNA evidence taken from the crime scene belonged to the victim.

Solving the case took old-fashioned legwork, digging up witnesses and getting them to talk about what they knew. Being a relatively “cold case” at the time helped. When Newhouse began finding and talking with acquaintances of Lejeune, the suspect was already in custody for a sexual assault case. This helped “loosen some tongues,” said Newhouse.

Testimony from old and new witnesses confirmed that Lejeune had at one time possessed a mask similar to the one described by the victim, and they fingered him for bragging about the deed. Witnesses also said Lejeune expressed specific hatred for the victim as well as dislike for “old people” in general.

Important testimony from Wellington (Colorado) officer Jim Lafferty placed Lejeune in Wellington (Colorado) near the time of the crime. On Aug. 21, 2008, the district attorney filed charges against Lejeune for first-degree burglary (a class three felony), third-degree assault of an at-risk adult (a class six felony) and first-degree trespass (a class five felony). Prosecutors dismissed the first two charges, and Lejeune pled guilty to trespass, which saved a jury trial and brought earlier closure to the victim.

Because there was no direct physical evidence putting Lejeune at the scene, the case was not airtight, said Newhouse. “It’s amazing what defense attorneys can do,” he added.

Lejeune’s prison sentences from the two crimes total 16 years.

Newhouse was pleased that he could help the victim. “She was thrilled about it,” he said. “She was relieved and happy.”

Newhouse also admired the victim for her “spunk” and courage. “She really did the right thing by yelling for her husband,” he added.

Her husband had died three years prior to the attack.