More information about Sheriff Laux:
Sheriff Sued for Teena Murder
In the nearly six years since transgender Brandon Teena was murdered along with two of his friends, he's become the subject of both documentary and dramatic films, print and TV reports, and even a remarkable Internet art project, yet Teena's mother's wrongful death lawsuit against then-Richardson County, Nebraska Sheriff -- now-County Commissioner -- Charles Laux is being tried with little fanfare. JoAnn Brandon charges that Laux' failure to arrest the two men who beat and raped Teena on December 25, 1993, allowed them to murder him (and his friends Lisa Lambert and Philip DeVine) on December 31, 1993.
John Lotter and Marvin Nissen were convicted of those murders and sentenced, respectively, to death and to life imprisonment; they were enraged that a biological female had been able to pass as a male and date a female friend of theirs. JoAnn Brandon had to go to the Nebraska Supreme Court to win the chance to have a trial at all, on behalf of Teena's estate. In addition to negligence resulting in Teena's death, Brandon is charging that Laux deliberately inflicted emotional distress on Teena. The three-day hearing began September 21 in Richardson County District Court in Falls City. Teena has been consistently referred to in court proceedings as a female and by his birth name Teena Brandon; Brandon's attorney Herbert Friedman refers to him as "the girl."
There are two key elements in Brandon's case. One is that then-Chief Deputy Sheriff Tom Olberding believed he had probable cause to arrest the suspects on December 28, based on physical evidence deputies found at the scene as well as Teena's testimony, but Laux stopped Olberding from making the arrest. The other element, as Nebraska Supreme Court Judge Nick Caporale wrote, is that, "Notwithstanding his knowledge of the threat to the victim's life, Laux informed the perpetrators of the victim's complaint. It seems to me that the moment the perpetrators were made so aware, Laux acquired a duty to protect the victim. If the allegations are proved, by talking with the perpetrators but not arresting them, Laux laid an essential link in the chain that led to the victim's death."
Laux' defense denies that the sheriff had a problem with Teena's gender presentation and portrays him as working hard, even on Christmas Day, to build a stronger case against the assailants. He did not believe at the time that Teena's life was actually in danger.
The most dramatic moments of the trial were the playing of eight minutes of audiotape of Laux interviewing Teena on the day he reported the rape. The hard-to-distinguish audio was accompanied by a video showing the text of what was being said along with a still photo of whichever of the two was speaking. The "Omaha World-Herald" described Laux as "forceful and sometimes bullying and crude" as he doubted Teena's statements that he had never had intercourse and that the rapists had not manually touched his genitals, and as Laux inquired into Teena's sexual experiences with women. A psychologist testifying for the plaintiff (who had never met Teena) described Laux's approach as serving "to pour vinegar" in the rape victim's "open emotional sores." Laux' defense objected to the use of the tape because it had been edited for impact
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