Deputy District Attorney: P.O. BOX 2808 CHRISTIAN A. GOSSETT Oshkosh, WI 54903-2808 Oshkosh (920) 236-497 Assistants Fox Cities (920) 727-2888 STEPHANIE A. STAUBER FAX (820) 236-4952 ‘ADAM J. LEVIN winnebagoda@da.wi.gov TRACY A, PAIDER AMANDA L. FOLGER Investigators ANTHONY 8. PREKOP JIM GOGGINS MARGARET J. STRUVE STEVE VERWIEL AMANDA G. NASH DAVID C. RASHID Winnebago County Office Administrator TUCKER T. TELLEFSON KELLY KUTZ Diversion Program Coordinator Office of District Attorney VALERIE K: STUART ERIC D. SPARR VietimWitness Coordinator District Attorney TERRI VAN DELLEN To: Hon. Eric Heywood From: Atty. Eric Sparr Date: August 10, 2022 Re: Lindemann, Jason 22 GF 16 |. am writing to inform the Court that the Winnebago County District Attorney's Office has. requested that a special prosecutor be assigned to this case The plan had been for my office to handle this matter. Two people in my office are socially familiar with Mr. Lindemann, and would have been firewalled off from this case. A Riverside hearing was held when we determined that although the case was not yet ready to be charged, it also seemed inappropriate for Mr. Lindemann to simply be released from custody without rules or monitoring. At the time the request for the Riverside hearing was made, law enforcement had sent charges to my office related to a limited number of what we now know to be the full list of victims. As law enforcement continued to investigate and more victims were identified, we found that individuals in my office know some of the victims. However, that alone would not have been something that would have required us to be off of the case, In the weeks following the incident, there was significant discussion of the case on social media. | am aware that rumors and incorrect information came out, and were repeated many times, concerning particular community members being on Mr. Lindemann’s boat. My office has no conflict regarding any of the passengers that were actually on Mr. Lindemann’s boat. However, the false information propagated on social media helped create the appearance of a conflict, even in the absence of an actual conflict To have a properly functioning criminal justice system, we must first avoid real conflicts. Public trust in the process, and in outcomes of criminal cases, is also tremendouslyimportant, which means we also must avoid the appearance of conflict, Given all the factors outlined in the memo, | have concluded that it is not possible for my office to prosecute this case without creating the appearance of conflict, and we are pursuing the appointment of a special prosecutor. en Eric Sparr District Attorney