Twins TYLER and SAVANNAH YATES - 5 Weeks (2008) - Baraboo WI

BARABOO - A Baraboo man charged with murdering his twin infant
children has a trial date set for October so his fifth defense
attorney can get up to speed on the case.

Sauk County District Attorney Patricia Barrett and Assistant DA
Kevin Calkins assembled in the office of Circuit Court Judge James
Evenson on Wednesday to consult about the next steps in the
prosecution of David R. Yates, 47. Yates' newest defense attorney,
John M. Brinckman of La Crosse, attended the meeting via
telephone.

Yates was not present nor did he participate in the conference
call. He is serving time at Green Bay Correctional Institution for
convictions unrelated to the deaths of his children.

Yates was charged with two counts of first-degree intentional
homicide after a police officer was called to his Lake Street home
on April 13, 2008, to check on the children's welfare, according to
court records. After repeated attempts to contact Yates, the
officer said he entered the home and found Yates in a very groggy
state and claiming the children had been picked up by a
friend.

The officer searched the bedroom and found 5-week-old Tyler and
Savannah Yates lying atop one another under the bed. During a
preliminary hearing, a pathologist testified the children died of
blunt force injuries to their heads.

A trial has been scheduled three times, and each time was pushed
back after disagreements between Yates and his lawyers.

Mostly recently in November, Madison-based attorney Ronald
Benavides asked to quit the case and said Yates wrote letters
complaining about his handling of the case to the court, state
Office of Lawyer Regulation and the Office of the State Public
Defender, which appointed Yates' defense team.

Yates has his own ideas of what should be done in his case and
Benavides said that was getting in the way of an effective
defense.

During Wednesday's scheduling conference, Brinckman said he was
appointed in December and has received multiple boxes of records
and evidence.

"I've covered about one of the boxes so far," he said.

Barrett noted Yates' attorneys have considered defenses such as
mental disease and "voluntary or involuntary intoxication."

Brinckman added a further complication when he said he not spoken
with Yates at the prison in Green Bay and needed to do so to work
out the defense.

"If you haven't talked to him, I don't believe he's accepted your
representation at this point," Barrett said.

Blunt force trauma to the head killed two Baraboo infants in2008, a pathologist testified Friday, with 5-week-old SavannahYates suffering at least four blows and her twin, Tyler Yates, alsosubjected to crushing force that fractured five ribs along hisspine. The murder trial of their father, David R. Yates, 48, of Baraboo,continued for its fifth day in Sauk County Circuit Court withtestimony by Robert Corliss, a forensic pathologist on the facultyof the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Yates was charged with two counts of first-degree intentionalhomicide after a Baraboo police officer came to his home lookingfor the children Sunday, April 13, 2008. He found their batteredbodies under a bed where Yates had been sleeping. Using pen on drawings of boy and girl children, Corliss describedwhere on each child's head, torso and extremities he located avariety of serious abrasions and contusions. Savannah Yates had some unusually long abrasions around the base ofher neck caused by friction, he said. "These are classically inflicted, often, by an item of clothingwith a collar," he said. "I see these in fights when someone grabssomeone's shirt." Both children had dot-like lesions where they suffered bleedingunder the skin that Corliss called "overstretch hemorrhaging." Thismeans the skin was stretched and small blood vessels broke, but theskin didn't tear. "Where you classically see these is in the abdomen and groin foldsof pedestrians struck by automobiles when they get thoracicwhiplash, when they arch their back so significantly (backward),"he said. Early in Corliss' testimony, Yates reported feeling sick because ofwhat he was seeing and was escorted to the court's holdingarea. While examining Tyler's back, Corliss found five of the child'sribs were fractured near the spine, and he also had bleeding on thefront of his heart. Holding a piece of paper rolled into a cylinder, Corlissdemonstrated for the jury how the injuries could be caused bysomeone squeezing the child's chest, pushing the breastbone backtoward the heart and spine. "It often is done with the hand," he said. "Posterior rib fracturesare very specific for (child) abusive injuries." Despite their many other injuries, Corliss said it was blunt forcetrauma to the head, including skullfractures, that killed both children.
When he opened their skulls, both had signs ofextensive bleeding on the surface of their brains. Deeperexamination of the brain tissue showed areas of severe bleeding, hesaid.
Because of the injuries visible around her head,Savannah was subjected to "a minimum of four" blows, Corlisssaid.
The injuries to the children’s brains were acute,Corliss said, meaning they died immediately or very soon aftersuffering the blows. Anything that caused a sudden movement of thechildren’s heads — and the brain to strike the inside of theirskulls — could do it, such as a backhand blow or karate chop.
Corliss said there was no doubt that the manner ofthe children’s death was homicide.
Late Friday afternoon Sherry Culhane, a forensicDNA examiner with the Wisconsin State Crime Laboratory in Madison,began her testimony. She was almost an hour into describing DNAidentification techniques when Judge James Evenson decided torelease the jury of Portage County residents so they could begintheir trip to Stevens Point for the weekend home.
Evenson reminded the jurors they must not talk withanyone about the case. They will resume hearing testimony at 8:30a.m. Monday.

Friday, October 29, 2010

Former Baraboo resident Susan Bird-Winbun, now of Reedsburg, pleads Oct. 19 for convicted murderer David R. Yates to acknowledge his crime and demands he receive the maximum of life in prison for each of their murdered children, 5-week-old Tyler and Savannah Yates.

Susan Bird-Winbun has endured the brutal murder of her 5-week-old twins, years of legal delays in the case as well as nearly a three-week trial, and she says it is her ability to look to the future that makes her a survivor, rather than a third victim of that heinous crime.

By fighting to toughen penalties for those who abuse and murder children, Bird-Winbun said she is making a new future for her self.

The painful journey began for the former Baraboo resident who now lives in Reedsburg late on April 13, 2008. She came to pick up the children from their father, David R. Yates of Baraboo, and got no response to repeated knocking. A Baraboo police officer found Yates lethargic and confused a short time later. After entering the house a second time, the officer found the babies battered to death under Yates' bed.

A Baraboo ambulance paramedic testified that Bird-Winbun was screaming inconsolably that evening after learning the fate of her children.

On Oct. 19, 2 1/2 years later, a jury found Yates guilty on two counts of first-degree murder for killing the infants. He was sentenced to serve two consecutive life prison terms without parole.

In the wake of the trial, Bird-Winbun said she is working and raising her two older children, Connor and Owen. Despite bad memories, she stays in this area because she has a very good co-parenting relationship with their father and her ex-husband,John Winbun. "My children have been a blessing to me, whether biological or adopted," she said. "It's beyond my comprehension that not everyone feels that way."

During the trial, Bird-Winbun testified Yates could be an "amazing man."

But looking back, she said she recalls signs of a violent nature that should have warned her. "That's one of the tricky things about domestic violence, it doesn't always come up at the beginning of a relationship, "Bird-Winbun said. "Sometimes when you're in the middle of it, it isn't easy to see the progression of it as it escalates from normal relationship to verbal abuse to physical abuse to sexual abuse. If you've forgiven three black eyes, why not the fourth?"

Women need to know setting boundaries and sticking to them is necessary to prevent themselves from being abused, Bird-Winbun said.

"Leave the first time, the first time he punches you or uses any kind of physical violence against you, the first time he threatens," she said. "Don't ever, ever think it can't happen to you."

At trial, Yates' defense attorney tried to plant doubt in jurors' minds with the theory Bird-Winbun could have dosed vegetable dip on Yates' kitchen counter with his own prescription anti-depressant to incapacitate him. The attorney argued she then could have killed the children herself, likely with the aid of a co-conspirator, he theorized.

Because it is a "dreadfully ludicrous" idea, Bird-Winbun said she didn't take the defense's theory personally.

"The fact that he had to resort to suggesting I had doped (Yates')vegetable dip reminded me his job is very difficult, he didn't have much to work with," she said. "The evidence clearly showed that David was guilty.

"I also didn't take it too personally because I didn't do it," said Bird-Winbun.

This is a second tragedy for Bird-Winbun, who said she had twins Dezi and Dakota Winbun in 1999. They were born three months premature and died several days later in the hospital.

Her face and voice soften as she talks about visiting the four children's graves, all lined up next to one another. "Sometimes, when I'm up at the cemetery and visit them and look at the matching headstones, it just doesn't seem real," she said. St. George, Utah resident Audra Bennion said she met Bird-Winbun through her Facebook page - Murder Is Murder, No Matter How Small The Victim. She created a You Tube video tribute to the infants on Bird-Winbun's behalf and set up a Web page for her at www.murderismurder.com. Bennion said she experienced an abusive marriage that led to her loss of custody of her children for a time. The two women share a passion for protecting children from abuse.

"I am extremely inspired by her," Bennion said. "She is such a strong, outstanding person." Bennion said despite Bird-Winbun's strong emotions throughout the ordeal, she refused to let the circumstances beat her down. "Through the whole two-week ordeal while they were fighting in court she always remained positive," she said. "She has been so strong and so inspiring and uplifting." Reedsburg resident Amberly Cooper said she has known Bird-Winbun for years. The death of her children and the Yates case ledBird-Winbun back to relying on her belief in God and faith that things will work out right in the end, she said. "When you suffer a severe loss like this, I think you kind of re-evaluate what's important in life," Cooper said. "I think she's had to do that."

Cooper said a few months ago she confronted a serious emotional issue and Bird-Winbun helped her get through it. "I think she's a really strong person and I think she's really compassionate and loving," Cooper said. "She has a lot of care for people and she's very insightful."

Bird-Winbun said the tragedy provides a direction for the rest of her life, and she has committed to being an advocate for tougher penalties for people who abuse or kill children. "In Wisconsin, on average an adult who murders a child sits (in prison) less than 25 years," she said. "That's not justice."

In addition to tougher penalties, child abusers should be placed on a registry similar to that of sex offenders so they can be tracked by authorities, Bird-Winbun said.

"If there's a national registry somewhere, where single parents could look up their significant other and maybe find out the history that's left out, I think that would prevent a lot of things as well, prevent a lot of disasters," she said. Like many people who have faced similar tragedies, Bird-Winbun said she has been plagued by thoughts of "what if." However, she thinks it's better to look toward the future and make changes to prevent abuse. "I think that's the difference between a victim and survivor, too,"she said.

David R. Yates asserts he is not guilty of killing his children during his sentencing hearing Tuesday morning, shortly after a Portage County jury convicted him of murdering 5-week-olds Tyler and Savannah Yates. Sauk Court Circuit Judge James Evenson rejected his protestations of innocence and ordered that Yates serve two consecutive life terms in prison with no potential for release.

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To the end, David R. Yates stood forcefully, even arrogantly, in asserting his innocence in the face of the jury's verdict of guilt for killing his twin infant children, Tyler and Savannah Yates at his former Baraboo residence.

The judge wanted none of it and ordered him to prison for life with no possibility of release after brief arguments Tuesday morning.

The Sauk County prosecutor charged Yates, 48, of Baraboo, with two counts of first-degree intentional homicide after the 5-week-old children were found battered to death in their father's home late in the evening of April 13, 2008. A Baraboo police officer noticed the children under a bed where Yates was found in a confused state of mind.

Over 10 days of testimony, Yates' attorney, John M. Brinckman of nalaska, tried to pin the crime on the children's mother, Susan
Winbun of Reedsburg. Brinckman argued Winbun could have drugged Yates with his own prescription of the anti-depressant Cymbalta,then killed the children after midnight, likely with the help of a male accomplice.

The case went to a jury of Portage County residents late Monday afternoon and they deliberated until about 8:15 p.m. before retiring for the night. News they reached a verdict came about 8:30 a.m., and just 20 minutes later each member told Judge James Evenson "guilty" on both counts.

During a 10 a.m. sentencing hearing, Barrett asked the judge to impose a term of life in prison for each of the children consecutively, with his earliest opportunity to apply for early release in 80 years.

Given a chance to speak, Yates insisted he was innocent and said he would not rest until the verdict is overturned.

"First and foremost, my statement remains the same, I did not kill my son Tyler Richard Yates," he said. "I did not kill my daughter Savannah Irene Yates."

Judge Evenson rejected his assertion of innocence. While there are inconsistencies in some of the prosecution's evidence, he said,the only reasonable reading of it is Yates killed the two children.

"The brutality with which your children were killed is unfathomable," Evenson said. "Both children suffered severe and massive head trauma."

Winbun sobbed and hugged friends as Evenson ordered that Yates serve two terms of life in prison consecutively. He declined to give Yates any opportunity to apply for early release from prison.

Three years after her ex-boyfriend killed her 5-week-old twins,
Susan Bird-Winbun has become a full-time advocate for protecting children from abuse.
She recently started a nonprofit, Murder is Murder, which is
lobbying for stiffer punishment against child abusers. She's also
in the process of opening a domestic violence shelter in Sauk County.
Bird-Winbun, 31, who recently moved from Baraboo to Reedsburg, is
speaking out about the abuse she suffered at the hands of David
Yates, who in October was sentenced to two consecutive life
sentences for the murders of their twin infants, Savannah and Tyler
Yates. The babies were found beaten to death in their father's condominium in April 2008.
"One of the goals of me speaking out is to save people from living
with the blame that I carry on myself," said Bird-Winbun, who also
is writing a book about her experiences with domestic violence. "I
am speaking so people know what to do before it turns into a
situation - a tragedy - like it did with my children."
Bird-Winbun said she had to be silent until Yates' trial was over.
David Yates, 18 years her senior, was her boss when the two worked
for a resort company in Wisconsin Dells. He had been her boyfriend
for 3 1/2 years, and she said he was good with her three children from a previous marriage.
The couple had been dating for six months when the verbal abuse
started, Bird-Winbun said. Soon he was grabbing her and throwing things at her, she said.
"Over time it began to escalate," Bird-Winbun said. "That's one of
the biggest myths about domestic violence, that it begins as
full-fledged violence. He didn't knock me unconscious or break my
nose the first time he hit me."
By the time she recognized what was happening to her as domestic
violence, she said, it was so overwhelming she didn't know what to
do. She finally had what she describes as "an awakening" and left
him one week after the birth of their twins. They were murdered one month later.
Interestingly, before that, Yates never acted out against any of
her children. He yelled at her older son once, but wouldn't even
put the kids in a "time out" without checking with her first, she said.
At the time she figured that if her older children were safe with
him, it followed that his own infant children would be safe, too.
She knows now that someone who is violent with one person will be
violent with others. "Chances are high they don't discriminate
against who they are violent against," Bird-Winbun said.
Child abuse is a hidden epidemic, according to Childhelp, a
national nonprofit dedicated to helping victims of child abuse and neglect.
Almost five children die every day as a result of child abuse, most
of them under the age of 4, the group reports. More than 3 million
reports of child abuse are made every year in the United States,
but each report can include multiple children.
Hanna Roth, co-founder of the Rainbird Foundation, a Madison
nonprofit that works to end child abuse, has her own history of
abuse. Her father was a teacher and a convicted pedophile. She said
she doesn't know how many children he hurt, and he went to prison
for his crimes against them. But he never served time for the abuse
he committed against Roth and her siblings.
"The fastest way to end child abuse is to take it out of the closet
and talk about it," Roth said.
It's important that children know that violence is never OK,
whether it's against an adult or a child, Bird-Winbun said. "This
is something you can talk about with your family at the dinner
table or in the car on the way to soccer practice."
In school, children are taught about safe sex and not doing drugs,
she said, "But I don't remember one single instance when it was
discussed what to do if your boyfriend hits you or how to help a
friend who's been abused."
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