[MI] Officer DeKleine sentenced to life, and group in Michigan for OIDV victims gets another activist

Former Holland Police Officer Ken DeKleine was ordered to spend the rest of his life in prison without parole for killing his wife. A 13-year Holland police officer, DeKleine, 45, was convicted in July of killing Lori DeKleine after a jury deliberated only 75 minutes...
...Her sister's death has motivated [Patti] Ticknor to become involved with the Michigan Officer-involved Domestic Violence [OIDV] group and try to spread the word about how women can get help in abusive homes. "Lori would be proud of us for having someone else learn from her situation," Ticknor said. "She would want someone's life to be saved."...
SENTENCING FOR DEKLEINE INCLUDED IMPACT STATEMENTS FROM FAMILY MEMBERS


LINKS FROM BLOG: "LORI MEULMAN DEKLEINE"

IMPACT STATEMENT OF LORI'S SISTER PATTI TICKNOR
&IMPACT STATEMENT OF LORI'S DAD, PAUL MEULMAN

IMPACT STATEMENT OF LORI'S MOM, JENA MEULMAN

FORMER HOLLAND POLICE OFFICER KEN DEKLEINE ORDERED TO SPEND LIFE IN PRISON FOR KILLING WIFE
The Grand Rapids Press
by John Tunison jtunison@grpress.com
Monday August 25, 2008, 11:27 AM
[Excerpts]GRAND HAVEN -- Former Holland Police Officer Ken DeKleine was ordered this morning to spend the rest of his life in prison without parole for killing his wife. A 13-year Holland police officer, DeKleine, 45, was convicted in July of killing Lori DeKleine after a jury deliberated only 75 minutes... Ottawa County Circuit Judge Calvin Bosman questioned why DeKleine did not get help when he was being overcome with the rage that led to the murder. "With your Christian education, your training as a police officer, your good record as a police officer, why during the course of a year something didn't register in your mind there would be some other course of action to take remains a total mystery," Bosman said. His video-taped confessions shows he entered the garage of his former Calvin Avenue home in the middle of the night Jan. 10, waited in attic for several hours, then pushed his way into the house after Lori DeKleine opened the door in the morning. He admitted to strangling her with a climbing strap, then dragging her body into the basement and trying to stage a suicide... "Thoughts of this event plague my mind frequently. I have spent many sleepless nights trying to understand Ken's selfish act," said Lori DeKleine's father, Paul Meulman. In court, [Lori DeKleine’s sister, Patti] Ticknor said she once respected and cared for Ken DeKleine, and admired him as a father, "until he thought it best to play God and kill Lori." DeKleine portrayed his estranged wife as someone mentally unstable who was damaging their children psychologically, but Ottawa County Prosecutor Ron Frantz said the evidence did not show any problems. In fact, she was a good mother and was respected at her church job, he said... Lori DeKleine's family believes the Holland police department should have done more to recognize that one of their own officers was losing control. They believe DeKleine was protected by the "blue wall," although Holland Police Chief John Kruithoff has always said DeKleine showed no outward signs of trouble. Her sister's death has motivated Ticknor to become involved with the Michigan Officer-involved Domestic Violence group and try to spread the word about how women can get help in abusive homes. "Lori would be proud of us for having someone else learn from her situation," Ticknor said. "She would want someone's life to be saved."... [Full article here]

HOLLAND POLICE CLAIM TO HAVE MADE CHANGES TO SUPPORT OFFICERS AFTER OFFICER DEKLEINE MURDERED LORI - BUT I DON'T SEE THE BIG AHA. DO YOU?


...[Lori's dad, Paul] Meulman voiced disappointment with the police department where Ken DeKleine worked. “I have wondered why the Holland police were not more effective in protecting Lori”... Several Holland officers testified during the trial in July that Ken DeKleine seemed obsessed with his troubled marriage. He framed his wife as emotionally unstable...

DEKLEINE SENTENCED TO LIFE FOR KILLING WIFE
The Holland Sentinel
By Megan Schmidt
Aug 25, 2008
...Ken DeKleine gave no statement Monday, but smiled and winked at family in the room. As he stood facing his wife’s family in the courtroom, Lori DeKleine’s father Paul Meulman said the abuse Lori endured in her marriage was something she kept private. “Her stories about Ken’s abuse of her were told to only a small group of people. I was included in that small group of people,” Meulman said. Meanwhile, Meulman said, “Ken deceived and manipulated many people with his side of the story.” Meulman voiced disappointment with the police department where Ken DeKleine worked. “I have wondered why the Holland police were not more effective in protecting Lori,” he said. Several Holland officers testified during the trial in July that Ken DeKleine seemed obsessed with his troubled marriage. He framed his wife as emotionally unstable to anyone who would listen... After giving the sentence, Judge Calvin Bosman said it was a mystery that Ken DeKleine plotted the murder for a year, never considering handling his issues with Lori DeKleine in another way... [Full article here]

GROUP AIMS TO RAISE AWARENESS OF OFFICER-INVOLVED DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
The Holland Sentinel
By Andrea Goodell
Posted Aug 16, 2008 @ 11:51 PM
* [Excerpts] Holland, MI — While experts tend to agree domestic violence is more common among police and military families, hard numbers are elusive, said Charisse Smith Mitchell executive director of Center for Women in Transition in Holland Township... “One of the first places you would naturally want to turn is law enforcement, but if the abuser is part of that system, you might not feel safe doing so,” she said. “Police have a great deal of credibility and access to things civilians don’t usually have.” Laura Spars grew up with Pam Aukerman Brainard. They learned how to ride bicycles together... Nov. 4, 2007, Plainwell police officer and Ostego fireman Kevin Brainard shot and killed his wife [Pam Brainard] of 14 months before committing suicide... Spars, Pam Brainard’s sister, and others formed Michigan Officer Involved Domestic Violence (michiganoidv.blogspot.com), a Web site and advocacy group. Members often attend court with victims. “When these women have someone there to support them, people take them more seriously,” Spars said. The group is also in the middle of a petition drive for two laws. One would raise awareness of officer-involved domestic violence. The second would require a statewide program to prevent it... No current Holland police officers have domestic violence complaints or personal protection orders on their records, [Holland Police Capt. Jack] Dykstra said. “There are so many exceptional police officers that provide such a wonderful service that no one wants to paint a picture that they can’t be trusted,” Mitchell said. “We are quite lucky and happy that we have such a strong relationship with law enforcement... They take domestic violence as seriously as we do.” [Full article here]

I NEVER WAS ABLE TO POST WHEN DEKLEINE WAS FOUND GUILTY BECAUSE I WAS TOO ANGRY, WATCHING THIS STORY PROCEED WITH NO ONE - IN THE MEDIA AT LEAST - POINTING OUT SOME ACCOUNTABILITY FOR LORI'S MURDER. BLAME? NO, I'M NOT LOOKING FOR SOMEONE TO BLAME - BUT IF THE COPS KNEW DEKLEINE WAS BEING BIZARRE, AND THE DV SERVICE WASN'T OPENING IT'S ARMS TO LORI, AND THE POLICE CHIEF WAS BAMBOOZLED - AND HE WAS - INTO BELIEVING KEN DEKLEINE'S LIES ABOUT LORI AND KNOWINGLY NOT ENFORCING LORI'S PROTECTION ORDER, THEN WHAT'S LEFT FOR LORI? THE CHURCH? IF THE WALLS COULD TALK! LORI'S MURDER BEGS FOR A WRONGFUL DEATH LAWSUIT IN BEHALF OF THE CHILDREN, TO FLUSH ALL THE TRUTHS INTO THE OPEN THAT CAN BE OBTAINED NO OTHER WAY, AND OUT OF THOSE TRUTHS MAYBE REAL CHANGE COULD BEGIN.

NO MEDIA FOLKS TOOK ON WHY THE DIRECTOR OF THE DV AGENCY AND THE POLICE CHIEF OF HOLLAND REALLY BOTH DECIDED TO MOVE ON TO OTHER JOBS. NO DIGGING, NO DIRT. WE HAD THE SAME EXODUS HERE IN TACOMA WHEN OUR CHIEF SHOT HIS WIFE AND HIMSELF. AS SOON AS THEY WERE BURIED PEOPLE WERE ABSCOUNDING.

KNOWING WHAT I'VE HEARD HAPPENED AND DIDN'T HAPPEN, AND RECALLING THE INITIAL ACCIDENTAL REVELATIONS FROM THE CHIEF, I CAN ONLY READ THIS AND WONDER WHERE THE VICTIMS OF OFFICER-INVOLVED DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CAN TURN IN HOLLAND:

"“We are quite lucky and happy that we have such a strong relationship with law enforcement... They take domestic violence as seriously as we do.”

-- Charisse Smith Mitchell Executive Director of Center for Women in Transition in Holland Township

MOST PEOPLE HAVE NO IDEA HOW HARD IT IS FOR WOMEN LIKE LORI TO FIND HELP. I THANK GOD FOR RENEE HARRINGTON IN MICHIGAN WHO IS WHOLE-HEARTEDLY DEDICATED TO THE OIDV VICTIMS THERE - AND WHO HAS BEEN JOINED BY THE DETERMINED AND LOVING SISTERS OF BOTH SLAIN PAM AND LORI.

RELATED WEBSITES:

• [MI] LORI MEULMAN DEKLEINE
• [MI] PAMELA AUKERMAN BRAINARD
• MICHIGAN OFFICER INVOLVED DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

PREVIOUS ENTRIES THAT INCLUDE SLAIN LORI AND PAM:

• [MI] Officer's wife Pam Brainard felt she had no where to turn
• [MI] Officer-involved dv victims need an independent agency to turn to
• [MI] New blog dedicated to Pam & making Michigan listen
• [MI] Officer's wife, Lori DeKleine, murdered
• [MI] Chief Kruithoff ignored officer's crimes - Now Lori's dead
• "Remember Lori DeKleine as a brave and resilient woman"
• [MI] Last words of Officer's wife, Lori DeKleine
• LINKS TO POLICE OFFICER-INVOLVED DOMESTIC VIOLENCE (OIDV) SPOTS ON THE WEB
• [MI] Sister of murdered cop's wife Pam Aukerman speaks out
• When parents kill parents - If everybody thinks you're horrible, I win
• [MI] Group Aims to Raise Officer-Involved DV Awareness
• [MI] Officer DeKleine murder of wife Lori: Despite confession pleads not guilty
• [MI] Community & police helping DeKleine kids after murder of Lori
• [MI] Officer Ken De Kleine's wife-murder trial quietly delayed
• [MI] Officer DeKleine Wife-Murder Trial, Days 1 and 2
• [MI] Changes at police department after Officer DeKleine murdered his wife Lori

[police officer involved domestic violence oidv intimate partner violence ipv abuse law enforcement public safety lethal fatality fatalities murder michigan state politics rant]

[MI] Officer DeKleine Wife-Murder Trial, Days 1 and 2

[I'm withholding my personal comments until the trial is over.]

...HOLLAND POLICE OFFICER KEN DEKLEINE HAD TALKED WITH MANY CO-WORKERS ABOUT HIS MARITAL TROUBLES, EVEN TELLING ONE THAT HE PUT A RECORDER IN HIS WIFE'S BACKPACK. "HE WAS VERY OPEN ABOUT IT"... A HOLLAND POLICE DEPARTMENT RESERVE OFFICER [BRIAN EHLER] TESTIFIED WEDNESDAY, JULY 9, THAT HE HAD A CONVERSATION WITH KEN DEKLEINE IN WHICH DEKLEINE SAID HIS TWO CHILDREN WOULD BE BETTER OFF WITHOUT THEIR MOTHER... EHLER HAD HEARD FROM MUTUAL FRIENDS THAT LORI EXPRESSED A FEAR FOR HER LIFE... [KEN DEKLEINE'S SECRET MISTRESS RICHELLE] VANDERWAL SAID SHE NEVER CAME TO POLICE AFTER DEKLEINE'S ARREST THIS PAST JANUARY TO TELL ABOUT THEIR RELATIONSHIP... [OTTAWA COUNTY MEDICAL EXAMINER DR. DAVID START] TOLD THE JURY SHE [LORI] HAD CUTS, SCRAPES AND BRUISES ON HER FACE, ELBOWS, KNEES AND FEET...

HIDDEN EVIDENCE REVEALED IN KEN DEKLEINE MURDER TRIAL
The Grand Rapids Press
July 08, 2008
GRAND HAVEN -- Blood-stained clothes and a gray nylon strap, allegedly used by former Holland Police Officer Ken DeKleine to kill his wife -- were discovered under insulation in the attic of his estranged wife's home, police testified today. The evidence was discovered after Ottawa County sheriff's Detective Tom Knapp found a hiking-boot footprint on top of Lori DeKleine's car in the garage as police began to investigate her death on Jan. 10... Among the items in the attic, where prosecutors allege DeKleine hid for seven hours before emerging to attack his wife, were a set of black plastic gloves... Holland officers gave him [DeKleine] the gloves because Knapp came straight from his house that night and did not have time to stop and get the standard white gloves used at the sheriff's department... [Full article here]

DEKLEINE'S FRIEND: MURDER SUSPECT OBSESSED WITH ROLE OF WIFE'S THERAPIST
Grand Rapid Press
John Tunison
July 09, 2008
...Testimony showed that a DNA analysis of blood found in a hallway and stairwell of Lori DeKleine's home matched that of Ken DeKleine. His blood also was found on a gray strap that prosecutors say was the murder weapon. A sweatshirt that Lori DeKleine wore, found hidden in the garage attic, also had her husband's blood on it... [Full article here]

SON TAKES STAND ON FIRST DAY OF KEN DEKLEINE'S MURDER TRIAL
The Holland Sentinel
By Megan Schmidt
Grand Haven, MI
Jul 09, 2008
Christopher DeKleine began to worry about 5 p.m. when he hadn’t heard from his mother. His mother, Lori, had not come home from work. Her glasses — which she wore every day — were sitting on the table. When he tried to call her cell phone, he heard it ringing on the bed. What the son of former Holland police officer Ken DeKleine didn’t know was his mother was already home — but she was dead. Christopher DeKleine, 16, described coming home from school on the afternoon of Jan. 10 to find her body, strangled to death with a nylon strap, on the floor of the basement in their Calvin Avenue home... Christopher DeKleine said he was shocked to peer over the railing of the basement stairs and see her lying in the laundry room. Sgt. Jeff Velthouse of the Holland police — first to arrive at the scene — testified that when he got to the house, Christopher directed him to the basement. There, he described what appeared at first glance to be the setting of a suicide — a ladder opened up, and the strap tied around Lori’s neck, strung through a rafter in the ceiling. The ladder was “too far from the body,” for the suicide scene to look believable, Velthouse said. Velthouse made the decision to call DeKleine to the scene and embraced him when he arrived, he said. “He kept repeating Christopher’s name,” Velthouse said. “He kept asking, ‘Where’s Chris?’”... Prosecutor Ron Frantz said that of a list of 40 potential witnesses, at least two-thirds will be called to the stand... [Full article here]

EIGHT MOTIVES
The Holland Sentinel
By Megan Schmidt
Jul 08, 2008
Taking Lori DeKleine’s life was “the ultimate act of control,” prosecutor Ron Frantz said Tuesday, July 8. Ken DeKleine had a variety of reasons for wanting his wife dead, he said. Frantz laid out eight motives during his opening statement during the first day of the trial:

• DeKleine was angry over being served with a restraining order by Lori. She had filed the personal protection order on Jan. 31, 2007, fearing for her safety.
• DeKleine conducted “extensive eavesdropping and surveillance” of Lori in the year leading up to her death. Frantz said DeKleine broke into her e-mail account to retrieve copies of messages sent between Lori and her attorney.
• The DeKleines were in the midst of a divorce, and hearings for their formal separation kept getting adjourned for reasons beyond their control.
• A custody battle for their two children, Breanne, 18, and Christopher, 16, was brewing.
• DeKleine discovered e-mails between Lori and the organizer of a seminar on stalking — an event Lori planned to attend, where she was considering sharing her experiences.
• DeKleine’s friend and former college roommate was also going through marital troubles, and he believed Lori was encouraging the man’s wife to leave him.
• DeKleine became convinced that Lori was having an affair with her psychologist... [Full article here]

OFFICER: DEKLEINE SAID KIDS BETTER OFF WITHOUT MOTHER
Second day of testimony continues
The Holland Sentinel
By Staff reports
Posted Jul 09, 2008
A HOLLAND POLICE DEPARTMENT RESERVE OFFICER TESTIFIED WEDNESDAY, JULY 9, THAT HE HAD A CONVERSATION WITH KEN DEKLEINE IN WHICH DEKLEINE SAID HIS TWO CHILDREN WOULD BE BETTER OFF WITHOUT THEIR MOTHER...
On Wednesday, Reserve Officer Brian Ehler testified that, in a conversation, Ken said Lori was suffering from a mental disorder and that Ken felt the children would be better off without Lori. Also Wednesday, a coroner testified that there were signs of struggle on Lori’s body that were not consistent with suicide... [Full article here]

MEDICAL EXAMINER: DEKLEINE DEATH WAS MURDER, NOT SUICIDE
Jon Mills Reporting
WZZM, MI - 4 hours ago
...Ottawa County Medical Examiner Dr. David Start was the first on the stand. Dr. Start performed the autopsy on Lori DeKleine's body the day following her death. The doctor told the jury she had cuts, scrapes and bruises on her face, elbows, knees and feet. Dr. Start says the most significant factors in his homicide determination were the scrapes and cuts on Lori's neck, caused by a nylon strap being tightened around her neck during a struggle to stay alive... [Full article here]

DEKLEINE TRIAL: 'I KNOW WHAT I WAS DOING'
woodtv.com
July 9, 2008
By Joe LaFurgey
About a half-dozen Holland police officers who worked alongside Ken DeKleine testified Wednesday at his murder trial. And a friend of DeKleine's testified DeKleine basically admitted killing his wife during a jail cell chat in May. One of the officers who took the stand was veteran detective Roger VanLiere. He said DeKleine came to work late on January 10, the day Lori was killed. "There was a look about his face that appeared to be different than what I had seen before from Ken," VanLiere said. Brian Ehler, a Holland Police Department reserve officer became friends with DeKleine... [Brian] Ehlers said he told DeKleine he wished something could have been done to prevent Lori DeKleine's death. "Ken's response back to me was, Brian, you can't beat yourself up about this. I know what I was doing" Ehlers said on the stand in Day 2 of the trial. Ehler also testified about a discussion he had with Ken DeKleine before the murder of his wife. It centered on a training session Ehler attended, hosted by a local medical examiner, on how to identify strangulation cases. "During this conversation, I do recall Ken saying something about strangling someone could be, probably, a practice that would be difficult to investigate." Ehler and DeKleine discussed the DeKleine's marital woes the day before the murder. EHLER HAD HEARD FROM MUTUAL FRIENDS THAT LORI EXPRESSED A FEAR FOR HER LIFE... Thursday, DeKleine's videotaped confession is expected to be played in court... [Full article here]

WOMAN TESTIFIES SHE HAD SECRET AFFAIR WITH COP ACCUSED OF MURDER
The Grand Rapids Press
John Tunison
July 09, 2008
At the same time Ken DeKleine claimed his estranged wife was having an affair with her therapist, he was romantically involved with another woman, court testimony today revealed. Richelle VanderWal, once married to a Holland police officer, was in the midst of a divorce in 2006 when she said she met Ken DeKleine and began a relationship that lasted until his arrest for allegedly killing his wife. VanderWal testified today at Ken DeKleine's murder trial, describing how she met DeKleine in July 2006 and began a sexual relationship that fall, before her December 2006 divorce. DeKleine still was living at the Calvin Street address with Lori DeKleine until she filed a personal protection order in January 2007. They kept the relationship a secret, she said. VanderWal testified DeKleine was fixated on doing something about suspicions his wife was having a relationship with her therapist and planned to report the man to a state board... VANDERWAL SAID SHE NEVER CAME TO POLICE AFTER DEKLEINE'S ARREST THIS PAST JANUARY TO TELL ABOUT THEIR RELATIONSHIP. They eventually contacted her. "I know how police think. I was afraid of being accused of her murder," she said... In the early morning hours of Jan. 11, in an interview room at the Zeeland Police Department, Ottawa County sheriff's Detective Tom Knapp told DeKleine they had found clothes in the garage attic with apparent blood stains. During that interview, DeKleine claimed he left items in the attic while fixing a vent pipe in 2006 and had cut himself. When Knapp directly accused DeKleine of being responsible for his wife's death, DeKleine replied: "I don't know how to respond to that, Tom." [Full article here]

OFFICER TESTIFIES THAT DEKLEINE PUT TAPE RECORDER IN WIFE'S BACKPACK
The Grand Rapids Press
John Tunison
July 09, 2008
Testimony today revealed that FORMER HOLLAND POLICE OFFICER KEN DEKLEINE HAD TALKED WITH MANY CO-WORKERS ABOUT HIS MARITAL TROUBLES, EVEN TELLING ONE THAT HE PUT A RECORDER IN HIS WIFE'S BACKPACK. "HE WAS VERY OPEN ABOUT IT," Officer Jose Mendoza said, testifying about how DeKleine had mentioned that his estranged wife had gotten a personal protection order against him. DeKleine told Mendoza he thought his wife was having an inappropriate relationship with her therapist and was upset about it. "He felt the therapist was brainwashing her and taking advantage of her. He was trying to get that to come to light so (the therapist) would lose his license"... Officer John Weatherwax testified DeKleine told him he put some type of recording device in his wife's backpack to try to record information about the relationship with the therapist. [Full article here]

HOLLAND POLICE OFFICERS TESTIFY TO KEN DEKLEINE'S UNHAPPY MARRIAGE
The Grand Rapids Press
John Tunison
July 09, 2008
Ken DeKleine's broken marriage and frustrations over the divorce process and his estranged wife were almost common knowledge among many Holland police officers. "He was very open about it," Officer Jose Mendoza said... By many accounts, the veteran officer believed his wife, Lori DeKleine, was romantically involved with her therapist and he wanted to get the man's state license revoked. Several said DeKleine seemed obsessed with the issue. NO ONE THOUGHT DEKLEINE WOULD KILL HER, though... Fellow officers noticed a cut on his lip mended with stitches, but he told them the lid from a cast iron Dutch oven fell on him as he tried to retrieve it from a shelf. Prosecutors say the real cause was his wife biting him as he strangled her... Officer John Weatherwax testified that DeKleine earlier confided in him about his frustrations, particularly that his wife had a personal protection order against him... Weatherwax said DeKleine mentioned putting a recorder in his wife's backpack to "get information" about the relationship his wife had with the therapist...[Full article here]

DEKLEINE WAS HIDING RELATIONSHIP WITH ANOTHER WOMAN
The Holland Sentinel
By Megan Schmidt
Jul 09, 2008
While Ken DeKleine obsessed over the possibility that his wife was romantically involved with her therapist, he was hiding a sexual relationship with another woman, according to testimony on Wednesday, July 9... Holland police officer Jose Mendoza said that when it came to relationships, in several conversations, DeKleine only spoke about his wife. “He felt (Lori’s) therapist was brainwashing her and taking advantage of her”... MENDOZA SAID DEKLEINE ALSO EXPRESSED ANGER THAT HER THERAPIST INSPIRED HIS WIFE TO FILE A RESTRAINING ORDER AGAIN HIM IN JANUARY 2007, AND CALLED LORI A “CREATIVE” WRITER... [Full article here]

[MI] Lori MEULMAN DeKleine remembered

Lori DeKleine remembered
Family and friends gather for service one year after murder of wife by officer
The Holland Sentinel
By MEGAN SCHMIDT
Posted Jan 10, 2009

In the months before her murder, Lori DeKleine began to “branch out.”

She started to confide in her sister and others about the abuse and manipulation she was subjected to by her husband, who at the time was a Holland police officer.

That’s why last summer, members of Holland Heights Christian Reformed Church decided that the best way to remember Lori, who loved gardening, would be to plant a tree outside the church.

On Saturday, Jan. 10, family and friends of Lori DeKleine gathered around that tree for a candlelight vigil — exactly one year after her murder.

The memorial took place just across the street from the Calvin Avenue home where Lori DeKleine, 43, was found dead in her basement on Jan. 10, 2008.

Her husband, Ken DeKleine, against whom Lori DeKleine had once filed a restraining order, was convicted of her murder in July and sentenced to life in prison without parole.

With a portrait of Lori positioned on a table behind him, senior pastor George DeJong led a group of about 40 people in attendance through prayer during the ceremony.

“I really don’t believe that Lori’s time on earth was over, but it was taken by Ken,” DeJong said. “It was received by God, no question. But it was robbed.”

Lori’s sister, Patti Ticknor, recalled Lori’s skill as a writer during the memorial service.

Ticknor remembered a book Lori composed for her parents called “My Heart,” inspired by her faith, for Christmas in 2007.

Material from that book would later be drawn for Lori’s funeral service.

“She actually wrote her own funeral,” Ticknor said.

That Christmas remains etched in Ticknor’s memory, because it was a time when she was just beginning to know Lori as a friend, she said. It was also the last time she would see Lori alive.

For years, the sisters were at odds — often due to Ken DeKleine’s manipulative behavior, she said.

Ken appeared to be one of the “nicest, gentlest” people, Ticknor said, often causing her to question Lori’s side of the story.

“He would give me information that built a case against Lori,” she said.

Ticknor’s relationship with Lori began to change when the sisters began working together, after Lori had separated from Ken. The improvement showed at that last Christmas together, Ticknor said.

“We were like long-lost friends,” she said. “My parents’ faces glowed.”

Since Lori’s murder, Ticknor said she’s received support from organizations such as Michigan Officer Involved Domestic Violence.

The organization helps women who are victims of domestic violence to find their voices.

Before her death, Lori may have felt that her voice had been silenced, friend Suzy Doyle said.

During the memorial, Doyle recalled walking Lori through the steps to apply for a personal protection order in January 2007, thinking it would help to keep Ken away from her.

“I was confident the criminal justice system would take this woman seriously,” Doyle said. “The judge assured her that while Ken was powerful, he (the judge) was powerful, too.”

Since Lori’s murder, several members of the Holland Police Department have apologized to her parents for not coming to Lori’s aid, Ticknor said.

As the service closed, DeJong reminded gatherers not to forget Lori’s murder — but also not to give Ken DeKleine the power to continue manipulating the emotions of those she loved.

“We must be conscious of the chaos that happened down this street, but not controlled by it,” he said.  [LINK]

RELATED WEBSITES:

• [MI] LORI MEULMAN DEKLEINE
• [MI] PAMELA AUKERMAN BRAINARD
• MICHIGAN OFFICER INVOLVED DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

PREVIOUS LORI POSTS:

• [MI] Officer's wife, Lori DeKleine, murdered
• [MI] Chief Kruithoff ignored officer's crimes - Now Lori's dead
• "Remember Lori DeKleine as a brave and resilient woman"
• [MI] Last words of Officer's wife, Lori DeKleine
• When parents kill parents - If everybody thinks you're horrible, I win
• [MI] Officer DeKleine murder of wife Lori: Despite confession pleads not guilty
• [MI] Community & police helping DeKleine kids after murder of Lori
• [MI] Officer Ken De Kleine's wife-murder trial quietly delayed
• [MI] Officer DeKleine Wife-Murder Trial, Days 1 and 2
• [MI] Changes at police department after Officer DeKleine murdered his wife Lori
• [MI] Officer DeKleine sentenced to life, and group in Michigan for OIDV victims gets another activist

[MI] Chief Kruithoff ignored officer's crimes - Now Lori's dead

I was so sad to see even the titles of the last stream of articles about Lori's murder. I had to call my friend Renee' and have her stay on the phone with me so I wouldn't be alone as I read them.

Again - another officer's wife who was terrified before she was killed, felt - no - knew she couldn't get help from local police, and whose killer was violating the court protecion order repeatedly - without receiving any consequences for doing so. Here is yet another chief who says he knew, but who says it's not his job to handle the officers personal life. This chief says he didn't know what was in Lori's protection order even though it's filed with his department on his own officer. Unpersuasive CYA.

And clearly, even now with Lori dead, this Chief still believes whatever Officer Ken DeKlein told him about Lori - what DeKleine told EVERYone - in order to discredit her, dessimate her credibilty.

It must have been for Lori like a horror movie, every day. And then one day there he is, having broken into her house again, stepping out from the shadows when she thought she was in the house alone...

I'm not talking about "blame" now when I say this chief needs to be held accountable for his part in the murder of Lori Kay Meulman DeKleine. Just straight accountability. If he had obeyed Federal gun law, if he had enforced protection order violations, if he had considered for one moment that Lori was not the liar, if he had taken time to learn the dynamics of domestic violence and the redundantly unimaginative, predictable strategies of abusers... if the chief had exercised any degree of law enforcement PROFESSIONALISM at any point along his officer's course - perhaps Officer DeKleine could have gotten help, and there is a much better chance that Lori's children would still have their mother. Sue him - and his department, his city. Municipalities understand liability and make changes. For all the Lori's still "terrified" that that their officer husband is going to kill them - sue so-called top cops that don't lead. Make it not so comfortable to cover for officers who clearly need to get help. Make them think twice about ignoring an officer's wife because they want to protect the officer's career. Force them into correctness. To see some of what a righteous officer-involved domestic violence WRONGFUL DEATH lawsuit can do for the TERRIFIED who are still alive - PLEASE visit

www.lanejudson.com.

Holland Police Chief John Kruithoff

From following video:
Holland Police Chief John Kruithoff: "My job is to make sure he can perform his job. And Ken did his job, alright?..."

Lori DeKleine wrote that she found several recording devices in her backpack, on their home phone and under some clothing in their bedroom. "The next week Ken told me I was 'under investigation'"... Days before her estranged police - officer husband, Ken DeKleine, allegedly slipped into her Holland Heights home and strangled her, she told friends: "You know, if I come up dead, if something happens to me, make sure Ken's investigated"... "I have become increasingly terrified and afraid for my life... Ken has been a sexual and emotional bully throughout our marriage, beginning on our honeymoon"... She told people last weekend that if anything happens to me, make sure they investigate Ken...

From following video:
"...Now the Holland Police Chief says he knew Lori DeKleine took out a Person Protection Order against her husband, but he did not know why... Holland Police Chief John Kruithoff says that Officer Ken DeKleine came into contact with wife Lori three times after he was ordered to stay away from her. Each occasion was investigated, and excused..."

Lori DeKleine felt isolated, and she did not think the police would protect her. She believed her husband had convinced friends, including those at Holland Heights Christian Reformed Church, where they both worshipped and she worked, that she was the problem... He said he had "complete support" from police commanders who had "full knowledge of all of Lori's mental health issues and have discussed her suicidal behavior"... "If there would have been alarm signs, we would have done something," Chief John Kruithoff said. "I didn't see there was a significant event that went on in his life that would have triggered this. Ken was a very talkative person, everyone's friend. He didn't suppress the fact he was having marital troubles. But, obviously, he suppressed something enough where he committed this."

PIECES OF ARTICLES:

Neighbors say officer charged with killing his wife had restraining order against him
WZZM
1/13/2008
Holland – While a Holland police officer sits in jail, new information sheds light on a marriage neighbors say was falling apart. Police arrested Officer Ken DeKleine for killing his wife [Lori DeKleine] Thursday night in the couple's home... [Holland Police Chief John] Kruithoff says the couple had been having marital problems, which Ken DeKleine had been open and honest about. "Ken's been very open about the difficulties he's had with his wife, it's not a secret, and the results of this event are very shocking and disturbing to us... this absolutely is a person you wouldn't expect this from"...

Officer Arraigned For Wife's Murder
wwmt.com
January 14, 2008
...Court documents tell a twisted story of Ken lying in wait with a nylon strap, confessing that he strangled his soon to be ex-wife last week, trying to make it all look like a suicide... Even before Newschannel 3 profiled Officer DeKleine in 2005 as he prepared to head over to Iraq to train officers, a neighbor says the couple had filed for divorce. "Yeah, we were aware of it, Ken shared his frustration with that," said Holland Police Chief John Kruithoff. Lori had filed a personal protection order against Ken in January of '07. In it, a number of restrictions were listed, stating that DeKleine was prohibited from entering the couple's house, stalking Lori, or threatening her, verbally or physically. The PPO was filed with Holland Police, the very place where Ken continued to work as an officer. Lori's divorce Attorney Holly Verdem says that Lori was afraid of what Ken might do to her. "She told people last weekend that if anything happens to me, make sure they investigate Ken," Verdem told Newschannel 3. Then on Thursday, Lori's body was discovered...

Victim was terrified of her husband, records show
Grand Haven Tribune
Chris Epplett
Tue, Jan 15, 2008
Lori DeKleine was aware of the danger signs around her. "I have become increasingly terrified and afraid for my life," she wrote in a personal protection order filed in Ottawa County Circuit Court on Jan. 31, 2007, against her husband, Holland police officer Ken DeKleine... In the protection order, Lori DeKleine cites three specific incidents in mid-December 2006 and early January 2007. She claimed she was coerced into sexual acts on several occasions during their marriage and molested while on sleep medications. "Ken has been a sexual and emotional bully throughout our marriage, beginning on our honeymoon... His behavior continues to stifle my well-being and safety"... The final straw that apparently led to the filing of the protection order was an episode during the last weekend of January 2007, while the couple was still living together. "I believe Ken broke into the locked room I have been sleeping in to stay safe," she said. "I believe he broke in through the window in the room, leaving glass all over the bed and blood stains throughout the room and house"... Lori DeKleine wrote that she found several recording devices in her backpack, on their home phone and under some clothing in their bedroom. "The next week Ken told me I was 'under investigation,'... I was afraid that he might harm himself or return and harm me," she wrote. The initial incident that Lori DeKleine specified in the protection order was an unexpected visit in December 2006. She claimed Ken, his brother Keith, and a friend named Mike Dozeman came to the house, and Ken began reciting Lori's previous friendships and journal entries to discredit her in front of their two children... Terms of the divorce, mostly concerning child custody, kept the case open through the end of the year. The original terms called for joint custody of the children, but Lori did not want to oblige, which sent the case to the county Friend of the Court for a ruling. By this point, court records show, the DeKleine children wanted nothing to do with their father...

Slain wife warned friends about possible violence
Police say evidence was lacking in previous domestic disputes
Grand Rapids Press
John Agar And John Tunison
January 15, 2008
The end for Lori DeKleine came just as she feared. Days before her estranged police - officer husband, Ken DeKleine, allegedly slipped into her Holland Heights home and strangled her, she told friends: "You know, if I come up dead, if something happens to me, make sure Ken's investigated." Her attorney, Holly Verde, recalled the haunting words Monday. She thinks Holland police should have done more to protect her client after Lori DeKleine chronicled allegations of abuse and a break-in at the home the couple once shared on Calvin Avenue. In a statement she wrote nearly a year ago, Lori DeKleine said: "I have become increasingly terrified and afraid for my life"... Police twice investigated allegations he violated a restraining order, but prosecutors did not find evidence to charge him. Police investigated the break-in, but it was viewed as a civil dispute because the officer, at the time, was not barred from the home. "If there would have been alarm signs, we would have done something," Chief John Kruithoff said. "I didn't see there was a significant event that went on in his life that would have triggered this. Ken was a very talkative person, everyone's friend. He didn't suppress the fact he was having marital troubles. But, obviously, he suppressed something enough where he committed this." Verde said Lori DeKleine felt isolated, and she did not think the police would protect her. She believed her husband had convinced friends, including those at Holland Heights Christian Reformed Church, where they both worshipped and she worked, that she was the problem. A mutual friend told her that Ken DeKleine had falsely told others she had a relationship with her therapist, records showed. DeKleine also said his estranged wife suffered severe depression and was suicidal. She has a "well-established pattern of blaming others for her mental and emotional problems," he wrote in court documents... He said he had "complete support" from police commanders who had "full knowledge of all of Lori's mental health issues and have discussed her suicidal behavior"...

Police: Officer confessed
Ken DeKleine charged with open murder in wife's death
Holland Sentinel
January 15, 2008
...On Friday, after DeKleine was informed of his right to remain silent, he admitted to investigators he had killed his 43-year-old wife, court records show. DeKleine, 44, was arraigned Monday afternoon in Holland District Court on an open murder charge. He remains jailed without bond. DeKleine told investigators on Friday that he had strangled his wife with a nylon strap in the kitchen at their home, according to court records. DeKleine then took his wife's body into the home's basement where he attempted to make her death appear a suicide... DeKleine had surreptitiously got inside the house -- the two had been separated and he was living elsewhere -- where he waited until his two children had left and Lori was alone. DeKleine then went into the kitchen where he choked his wife with a nylon strap until she fell to the floor dead... "He claims that he was bitten on his lip by (Lori) prior to the homicide, and this was substantiated by six sutures on (his) lip that was noted during the investigation"...

OBITUARY
Lori (Meulman) De Kleine, age 43, of Holland went to be with her Lord on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at her home. She was a member of Holland Heights Christian Reformed Church and also worked for the church as publications editor and creative force. She was a member of Focus Plus, a ADHD support group and served as the Holland Christian School TAP Board President. Lori grew up in Kalamazoo and attended Kalamazoo Christian School and Calvin College. She was a former teacher at Borculo Christian School. She is survived by her husband Ken and children... An on-line registry book is available at www.lakeshorememorial.com for those who cannot attend the services.

[MI] Last words of Officer's wife, Lori DeKleine

...DeKleine hatched a plan in December to kill her, then earlier this month went to her house in the middle of the night, lifted the garage door to get in, and hid in the attic above the garage in freezing temperatures until his teenage children left about 7:45 a.m. When they did leave, he emerged, strangled Lori DeKleine with the strap during a struggle in the kitchen, then dragged her body into the basement and staged a scene to look like a suicide...

Wife to Holland cop: 'Think about the kids'
WOOD TV- Grand Rapids MI
Jan 25, 2008 09:22 AM CST
Updated: Jan 25, 2008 05:10 PM CST
By JOE LaFURGEY
[Excerpts] Lori DeKleine's last words to her husband were, "Think about the kids." Her husband, Holland Police officer Ken DeKleine, replied, "I am thinking about the children." This information came to light at DeKleine's preliminary exam for the murder of his wife, and his attempts to make it look like a suicide. It was also revealed he'd thought about killing her for nearly a year... DeKleine admitted he'd been planning to murder his wife since January 31, 2007. But it wasn't until early December 2007 he actually formulated a plan. Michigan State Police Detective Sgt. Gary Miles testifed the day of the murder, DeKleine crawled up into the attic space above the garage and waited for his children to leave for school. He crawled down and confronted his wife. He used a gray strap to strangle her in the kitchen, and a fight ensued. She bit his lip severely, and blood got all over her clothes and his. Her last words were, "Think about the kids." He replied, "I am thinking about the children"... He disposed of some of the bloody clothes and went to a Med Center to get his lip sewn up. "He then went across the street or somewhere in the area to a McDonald's, bought himself a chocolate shake," Miles testified. DeKleine then returned to work at the Holland Police Department around 3:45 p.m. Divorce records obtained by 24 Hour News 8 shed light on DeKleine's frame of mind. He expressed concerns over his wife's mental stability and her ability to provide their two teenage children with a safe and stable home. In the custody petition, DeKleine claims his wife suffered from mental illness and had attempted suicide. He also insinuates his wife was having an affair with a therapist she was seeing. DeKleine, who is currently on an emergency unpaid suspension from the police department will next be in court on February 4, at which time a trial date will be set...

Holland Police Officer Charged With Murdering His Wife

WWMT

January 12, 2008 - 9:25AM

[Excerpts] The wife of a Holland police officer, found dead. Her husband, the officer, is charged with murder. A 13 year-veteran of the Holland police is in the Ottawa County jail Friday night on charges of open murder. Investigators with the Michigan State Police and Ottawa County Sheriff's Department say he killed his wife. Detectives arrested Officer Ken DeKleine Friday evening after an investigation that started Thursday night and continued all day Friday... One of he and his wife Lori's two teenage children found their mom dead in the basement and called 911. The police chief says the couple had been separated for some time and were in the process of getting a divorce. He says Officer DeKleine was on duty Thursday night when that emergency call came in. Officer DeKleine was participating in a training exercise. The chief could not say how Lori DeKleine died or when she died. Initially detectives thought Lori had killed herself...

Detective: Cop hid in attic before murder

The Grand Rapids Press

Friday January 25, 2008

[Excerpts] Officer Ken DeKleine first thought of murdering his wife the day she took out a restraining order against him. He carried out the plan earlier this month by hiding in the separated couple's attic overnight before he attacked her with a climbing strap and rubber gloves, a detective testified this morning. Michigan State Police Detective Gary Miles said DeKleine confessed to killing Lori DeKleine, telling him Lori DeKleine told him to "think of the kids" as he was strangling her with the strap. He replied to her: "I am thinking of the kids," said Miles, recounting DeKleine's confession. Miles said DeKleine told him he "wanted to cause her death and kill her. He hoped to get away with it so he could spend his life with his children without her"... DeKleine hatched a plan in December to kill her, then earlier this month went to her house in the middle of the night, lifted the garage door to get in, and hid in the attic above the garage in freezing temperatures until his teenage children left about 7:45 a.m. When they did leave, he emerged, strangled Lori DeKleine with the strap during a struggle in the kitchen, then dragged her body into the basement and staged a scene to look like a suicide, police said. DeKleine, whose shirt was bloody after Lori DeKleine bit his lip, tossed his sweatshirt and his shoes out the window as he drove to his apartment, Miles said. He hid Lori DeKleine's shirt, which he also removed because it was stained with his blood, in her home's attic...

[police officer involved domestic violence oidv intimate partner violence ipv alleged suicide abuse law enforcement public safety fatality fatalities murder michigan state fear afraid]

[MI] Officer's wife, Lori DeKleine, murdered

Friend says slain woman feared husband
Chronicle News Service
Posted by John Tunison and John Agar
January 13, 2008
HOLLAND --The wife of a Holland police officer now accused of murdering her was afraid of him and had a personal protection order to keep him away, a neighbor said... Officer Ken DeKleine, 44, is expected to be arraigned Monday in Holland District Court on a charge of open murder for his wife's death... "If somebody would have ever said, 'Is Ken DeKleine even capable of something like that?' I'd have bet him a million dollars, no way," [retired Sgt Mark] Bos said. "It's tragic. It's a shame. Now, we've got two teen-agers and no parents"... Lori DeKleine took out the protection order against her husband several months ago...
[Full article here]

Holland Police Chief John Kruithoff:
"It's tough when it's one of your own. As law enforcement officials, we have to put that aside and we did that. It doesn't make it easier"... Kruithoff said Friday night that he was aware the DeKleines were having marital problems. He said that for the past several months, DeKleine had not been living with Lori and their two children and that the separation had a "traumatic impact" on DeKleine...

Brad Ward, spokesman for the family and elder in the DeKleine's church, Holland Heights Christian Reformed:
"Both sides of the family have come together and are really trying to work through this and make sure they're doing what's in the best interest of the kids."

From the Holland Heights Christian Reformed Church Bulletin
PRAYER CONCERNS & PRAISES
... Please pray for Ken, Bre, & Christopher DeKleine as they grieve the loss of Lori this past Thursday...
[Full article here]

Holland officer accused of killing wife
WOOD TV
Posted: Jan 11, 2008
Updated: Jan 12, 2008
...Officers responded to a 911 call placed by one of the couple's children... They found Lori DeKleine, 43, the wife of Officer Ken DeKleine, dead in the basement... An autopsy was performed Friday and her death was ruled a homicide. Ken DeKleine, 44, was arrested later in the evening after investigators followed possible leads, interviewed many people, and collected various items of evidence. He will be arraigned Monday, January 14 on open murder charges...
[Full article here]

Slain wife feared officer, friend says
By John Tunison jtunison@grpress.com
and John Agar
The Grand Rapids Press
Sunday, January 13, 2008
To neighbors and fellow officers, Holland police Officer Ken DeKleine was almost perfect -- polite, sociable, a devoted Christian and good at his job. But to his estranged wife, he had become a threatening presence, a friend and neighbor of Lori DeKleine said... Lori was a member of Focus Plus, a support group for attention-deficit disorder, served on the Holland Christian Schools Tuition Assistance Board and had been a teacher at Borculo Christian School...
[Full article here]

Holland cop arrested in wife's death
By Nate Reens
The Grand Rapids Press
January 12, 2008
..."Ken and Lori had a strained relationship and had been separated," [Holland Police Chief John] Kruithoff said. "It was a troubled marriage. The problems, I don't know, and we'll never know what happened to bring this on." Ken DeKleine was at the department headquarters downtown when a 911 call was placed by a family member [their teenage son]... The chief contacted the Ottawa County Sheriff's Department to conduct the investigation... He would not disclose how the mother of two died... "Everyone's stunned, shocked and in disbelief. Ken's been everybody's friend and a very recognizable part of this community." Kruithoff said inconsistencies in his officer's story raised suspicion. "It's tough when it's one of your own," he said. "As law enforcement officials, we have to put that aside and we did that. It doesn't make it easier."
[Full article here]

Police officer charged with killing his wife
WZZM News
Created: 1/11/2008
Updated: 1/12/2008
...Holland Police Chief John Kruithoff says the couple had been having marital problems and may have been separated. He says it's been difficult for everyone involved, "When people find out about this, it will be disturbing to everyone who knows Ken, because this absolutely is a person you wouldn't expect this from"... Ken DeKleine is a 1987 graduate from Calvin College. He recently served a one year tour in Iraq as an International Police Liaison Officer. Lori DeKleine is a 1986 graduate from Calvin College. The couple have two children together...
[Full article here]

Many wonder what went wrong
Police officer in custody for wife's death
Holland Sentinel
BY MEGAN SCHMIDT
Sunday, January 13, 2008
..."The family is going through a tremendous amount of shock and grief right now," said Brad Ward, an elder for the Holland Heights Christian Reformed Church and family spokesman. Lori had been a part-time secretary for the church, in charge of putting together its newsletter... Principal Troy Stahl described Friday as "a difficult day." He said a school-wide prayer was held Friday morning... Lori had been a part of the high school's Theatre and Arts Program for several years, becoming its board president in the past year. "She was very involved in anything her kids were involved with," Stahl said. "She was someone who wanted to be a part of their lives"...
[Full article here]
Police officer held for murder of wife
Lori DeKleine found dead in home; Holland's Ken DeKleine faces open murder charges
Holland Sentinel
BY ANDREA GOODELL
January 12, 2008
...Holland Police Chief John Kruithoff said Friday night that he was aware the DeKleines were having marital problems. He said that for the past several months, DeKleine had not been living with Lori and their two children and that the separation had a "traumatic impact" on DeKleine. The couple was in the process of getting a divorce, he said. Kruithoff said this event has come as a shock to the department. "He always shared his personal issues, but with this he obviously suppressed his feelings," he said. "Because if we had seen alarms going off, we would have taken action"... Kruithoff said DeKleine had never been charged with domestic violence and that the only discipline against him during his time as an officer with the Holland police was "a couple of cruiser accidents." In a 2005 interview, Kruithoff said DeKleine was a well-respected and well-liked member of the department, calling DeKleine, "caring," "compassionate" and a "great cook." DeKleine was a 2nd lieutenant in the National Guard but resigned in 1994 to join the Holland Police Department. On at least two occasions, DeKleine told reporters the hardest part of his experience in Iraq was being away from his wife and two teenage children, Bre and Christopher. In a 2006 interview, Lori DeKleine said she recorded all of the children's activities while her husband was in Iraq. "Not being able to share them with Ken -- that was hard," she said...
[Full article here]

Holland cop arrested in wife's death
The Grand Rapids Press
By Nate Reens
Saturday, January 12, 2008
...Lori DeKleine is survived by her children, Breanne and Christopher, both teenagers. She was the publications editor at Holland Heights Christian Reformed Church. A church leader there declined to speak about her death, and her family could not be reached for comment.
[Full article here]

Neighbors say officer charged with killing his wife had restraining order against him
WZZM News / Channel 13
Nick Monacelli
Created: 1/11/2008 9:19:39 PM
Updated: 1/12/2008 11:39:51 PM
..."There was a restraining order, he did violate that once." Ken DeKleine was taken into custody Friday and charged with open murder. He will be arraigned in the 58th District Court on those charges Monday. The Ottawa County Prosecutor and investigators will also meet Monday to determine more specific charges. Saturday afternoon family gathered outside the home, knowing first and foremost they need to take care of Ken and Lori's children Bre and Chris; both students at Holland Christian High School. "Both sides of the family have come together and are really trying to work through this and make sure they're doing what's in the best interest of the kids," says Brad Ward, a spokesman for the family. And in the face of tragedy, Lori's neighbor also knows the teenagers need support more than anything. "(Lori) lived through her children, absolutely loved them. Just keep them real close to your heart, and many prayers for them because they're going to need them"...
[Full article here]

[MI] Changes at police department after Officer DeKleine murdered his wife Lori

DeKleine murder inspires changes at police department
The Holland Sentinel
By Andrea Goodell
Posted Aug 16, 2008 @ 11:51 PM

Holland, MI — The murder of Lori DeKleine has spurred changes in the way the Holland Police Department handles domestic issues with its staff.

“Sometimes you have to ask your friend or co-worker the tough question: ‘Are you OK?’” Holland police Capt. Jack Dykstra said. “There were things we obviously didn’t know and had we known we could have done something different.”

In January 2007, Holland police officer Ken DeKleine broke into his wife, Lori’s, bedroom, leaving a trail of blood. It was the impetus for her to get a court-ordered restraining order on her husband. In his video-taped confession, Ken DeKleine says this is when he first considered killing his wife.

On Jan. 10, 2008, Ken DeKleine surprised Lori DeKleine in her kitchen and strangled her, trying to make it look like a suicide.

Ken DeKleine’s sentencing will be Aug. 25, but his first-degree and felony murder convictions carry mandatory life sentences without parole.

Changes

The department set up a new Yahoo! group for Holland police officers’ spouses to give them a way to communicate the good and the bad. There, they can talk about everything from their mundane plans for the day to the deadly serious.

“Someone may feel like ‘I don’t have a voice,’” Dykstra said. “That gives them another avenue to say, ‘I need help.’”

One of the group members acts as moderator for the site. If someone needs help, the moderator contacts the HPD peer support team, Dykstra said.

After Lori DeKleine’s murder, the Holland Police Department asked a psychologist to talk to officers about domestic violence in police families, how to recognize when they themselves or others need help. The lecture has become a regular part of training for officers and staff, said Dykstra, who is on a statewide domestic violence committee looking for the best methods being used in departments when dealing with domestic violence.

Some measures were in place before the January murder.

Any city employee can call a confidential phone number for two free counseling sessions. The city can also order counseling as part of a disciplinary action, Dykstra said.

Three Holland police officers — the peer support team — are trained to help their fellow police deal with the psychological impact of trauma. The West Michigan Critical Incident Stress Management Team helps with more difficult situations.

The department was in the middle of changing its policy on employee evaluations when Lori DeKleine was killed, Dykstra said. Employees are no longer evaluated once a year, but once every four months.

The more frequent evaluations make it easier to see changes in work habits, often an indicator of other problems.

DeKleine’s fellow officers testified at his trial that they saw no change in his performance in the months, weeks and days leading up to the murder of his wife, Lori. After he strangled her, Ken DeKleine went to the walk-in clinic to take care of a defensive wound. Then he got a shake and went to work.

All personnel files are closed. Dykstra said he could only speak to what Ken DeKleine had told him personally: That DeKleine had used the city employee assistance program, peer support and his own counselor.

Dykstra calls DeKleine a “wolf in sheep’s clothing.”

“I don’t think Ken DeKleine was always that wolf,” Dykstra said. “There were two sides to Ken DeKleine. ... There was a side to Ken we didn’t see.”

Reasons

The reasons for abuse in police families are varied. Police departments can cultivate a culture that suggests people need to be able handle mental stress by themselves, said Charisse Smith Mitchell, executive director of Center for Women in Transition in Holland Township.

Post traumatic stress disorder is as real in many police situations as it is in the military, she said. The nonprofit also works with area law enforcement on domestic violence cases.

Police officers often feel the pressure to be perfect, to be able to handle stress with “superhuman capacity,” Dykstra said.

“Everyone’s looking to you for the answers,” he said. “We’re supposed to be the problem solvers and not part of the problem.”

Over the past 30 years, a handful of deputies have had restraining orders taken out on them, some of those for domestic issues, said Allegan County Undersheriff Jim Hull.

Earlier this year, Allegan County Deputy Kevin Haan was arrested three times in quick succession — all on domestic violence-related charges — before resigning.

“If someone’s involved in domestic violence it’s a crime and we investigate it,” Hull said. “Anytime one of our people gets arrested that’s a major event for us.”

All new Allegan County Sheriff’s Office employees receive “Emotional Survival” by Dr. Gil Martin [sic; Kevin Gilmartin]. They have to read the book and so do their spouses, Hull said. All county employees have access to free mental health services.

The county has officers trained in peer counseling and internal review.

An officer convicted of any felony loses his or her certification to be a police officer in Michigan, officials said.

“I kept thinking there are certain things you will never know about people,” Dykstra said. “I’ve tried to figure it out with Ken and I just don’t know.” [Source]

[MI] Community & police helping DeKleine kids after murder of Lori

...Holland Police will play in a charity basketball game against a Hope College fraternity. The game is at 7:00pm on April 22nd... A benefit concert is planned for 7:30 pm on May 4th...

College students take police department to court
WWMT, MI
April 22, 2008
A group of Hope College students will take the Holland Police Department to court. The Phi Sigma Kappa fraternity has organized a charity basketball game. They're trying to raise money for the children of Lori and Ken Dekleine. Ken Dekleine is a former Holland Police officer now facing murder charges in his wife's death. Their daughter found Lori dead in her basement in January. Tuesday night's game is at 7:00 at the Richard and Helen DeVos Fieldhouse. All the money raised will go toward the Deklein children's education fund.

Fraternity Plans Dekleine Family Fundraiser
WXMI, MI - Apr 17, 2008
April 17, 2008, 5:30 PM EDT
A group of college kids are helping out a family torn apart by domestic violence. There is an event for the children of Ken and Lori DeKleine. Lori was strangled in her home back in January. Her husband Ken confessed to the crime. The Phi Sigma Kappa Fraternity is organizing a service project that's been weeks in the making. It's a charity basketball game at DeVos Fieldhouse in Holland: the frat brothers versus the police. They're also planning raffles, halftime activities, and food all donated by local businesses. The money will go to an educational fund for the DeKleine's two high-school age kids. At a preliminary trial, her husband Ken, a Holland Police Officer, confessed that he broke in, waited for the kids to leave for school, then killed her. That trial starts in June. "It's a tragedy that really struck Holland," said Hope student Matt Day. "Holland's a really tight community, so when something like this happens, everyone knows about it and everyone's struck by it." Tickets are available at the Devos Fieldhouse for a minimum $3 donation. Checks can be made out to the DeKleine Children Trust Fund. The event is Tuesday at 7 pm.

Holland Police set fundraisers for DeKleine kids
WZZM, MI - Apr 11, 2008
Created: 4/11/2008 5:53:07 PM
Updated: 4/11/2008
Holland Police and community groups are planning a pair of fundraisers for the children of a Holland Police Officer charged in his wife's murder. Organizers say Holland Police will play in a charity basketball game against a Hope College fraternity. The game is at 7:00pm on April 22nd at the DeVos Fieldhouse. A benefit concert is planned for 7:30 pm on May 4th at Holland Heights Christian Reformed Church. Proceeds go to a trust fund for the DeKleine's two teenage children. 45-year-old Ken DeKleine is set to go on trial in June. Prosecutors say he murdered his wife in January. They say he plotted the murder of 43-year-old Lori DeKleine for months.

[MI] Officer Ken De Kleine's wife-murder trial quietly delayed

I hear that with no official announcement the murder-of-Lori trial has been moved until July 8th, 2008. If anyone is paying attention, it will probably be pushed back again then too.

Previous entries:

• [MI] Officer's wife, Lori DeKleine, murdered
• [MI] Chief Kruithoff ignored officer's crimes - Now Lori's dead
• "Remember Lori DeKleine as a brave and resilient woman"
• [MI] Sister of murdered cop's wife Pam Aukerman speaks out
• [MI] Last words of Officer's wife, Lori DeKleine
• When parents kill parents - If everybody thinks you're horrible, I win
• [MI] Officer DeKleine murder of wife Lori: Despite confession pleads not guilty
• [MI] Community & police helping DeKleine kids after murder of Lori

Holland Michigan residents need to speak up. Only a couple of voices dared to rise up out of this community.

Sweet Lori - we are reaching out to other victims of officer-involved domestic violence, and will continue to, behind the scenes - with growing help from law enforcement, no help from the domestic violence communities, and a continued silence from the churches.

[MI] Officer DeKleine murder of wife Lori: Despite confession pleads not guilty

Previous entries:

• [MI] Officer's wife, Lori DeKleine, murdered
• [MI] Chief Kruithoff ignored officer's crimes - Now Lori's dead
• [MI] Sister of murdered cop's wife Pam Aukerman speaks out
• [MI] Last words of Officer's wife, Lori DeKleine
• When parents kill parents - If everybody thinks you're horrible, I win

DeKleine pleads not guilty
Trial of police officer accused of killing his wife at her home is scheduled for June
HollandSentinel.com, MI
Megan Schmidt
February 2, 2008
[Excerpts] The Holland police officer accused of killing his wife last month has pleaded not guilty for the charge of open murder... A jury trial has been scheduled for June 24. DeKleine, 44, was taken into custody the day after his wife, Lori, 43, was found dead in her Calvin Avenue home's basement Jan 10. The couple had separated and were going through a divorce before Lori's death. [Ken DeKleine's defense attorney Floyd] Farmer declined to comment on why DeKleine might enter a plea of not guilty despite having previously confessed to police that he committed the murder... The church and some individuals are working to put together a fund in the coming weeks for the children's education. "They have lives to continue to lead and school and no source of income to do it"...