Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

U.S. attorney won't investigate 1977 death case

By MIKE DONILA
Published March 8, 2007

CLEARWATER - The U.S. Attorney's Office has declined to investigate a July 1977 fatal wreck on Clearwater Beach that resulted in the deaths of a rookie police officer and a young motorist from Georgia.

The decision upset John Niesen, 52, who has long contended that his brother survived the crash but died at the hands of police officers intent on revenge.

"I'm really perturbed," Niesen said Wednesday. "I don't know what else anyone can do to show that there was a conspiracy."

At issue was how Michael Niesen, 18, died and whether police covered up the cause of his death.

The investigation said Niesen died from head injuries he suffered when he was thrown from his truck.

His older brother, though, believes otherwise.

John Niesen hired former federal prosecutor Jeffrey Del Fuoco to help him track down new witnesses.

In response to the threat of a $100-million federal lawsuit against the city, Clearwater police Chief Sid Klein in November asked the U.S. Attorney's Office in Tampa to review the case and, if warranted, conduct a "criminal review."

In a March 2 letter to Niesen, U.S. Attorney Paul Perez said he "reviewed the matter submitted to our office" but "we declined to pursue the matter."

[Last modified March 7, 2007, 22:28:16]