Ken Kratz, the district attorney whose successful prosecution of Wisconsin man Steven Avery for a 2005 killing is the subject of Netflix's Making A Murderer, is writing a book "to tell the whole story," he said Sunday.
The documentary has drawn viewers around the world, many of who believe Avery was the subject of a conspiracy by law enforcement officials to lock him up. At the time of his 2005 arrest for the murder of Teresa Halbach, the Manitowoc County man was suing officials after he was wrongfully imprisoned for 18 years on a sexual assault charge.
Kratz, the former district attorney of Calumet County, told WBAY-TV he decided to write a book “because the one voice forgotten to this point is Teresa Halbach.”
“Finally grateful to tell the whole story,” he said.
"The validity of the conviction is being challenged. The reputations of law enforcement, prosecutors, judges, and others in the criminal justice process are being trashed. The overall trustworthiness of the justice system is under attack," Kratz told BuzzFeed News via email. "I believe somebody needs to stand up for the cops, the courts, and the victim by telling the truth and setting forth the vast amount of evidence proving Avery's guilt beyond a shadow of a doubt."
Kratz said he planned to work for the next four months on the book and would "share a portion of the proceeds...honoring the memory of Teresa Halbach."
"I want people to understand that, contrary to the thesis of the documentary, our criminal justice system does work," he said. "And of course, in the process, I hope to restore my reputation."
Angry viewers have previously inundated Kratz's Yelp page with a flood of negative reviews and comments.
“Well over 90% are insulting, filled with profanity, and at least half hope some personal tragedy befalls me and/or my family,” the attorney told BuzzFeed News in December. “Very troubling.”
Kratz alleges that the filmmakers left out forensic evidence from the documentary.
He resigned as district attorney in 2010 over a scandal involving sexually explicit text messages he sent to a domestic violence victim while he served as the prosecutor in her case.