The Jens Soering Case: A New Verdict

“I'm innocent!” The final words of defendant Jens Soering at his trial in 1990 are by now nearly world-famous. Immediately after he said those words, Judge William Sweeney pronounced him guilty, based on the jury’s verdict. In this episode, Judge Ralph Guise-Ruebe renders his own verdict in the Soering case, based on the evidence known in 1990 and today. Would Soering still be indicted and convict...

Jens Soering faces his accusers. A key aspect of criminal trials is the interrogation of the defendant. In this episode, Soering must answer difficult questions posed by Judge Ralph Guise-Ruebe. Soering responds to the allegations that have been considered unanswered for decades. Why did he confess three times? Why did he wait four years to withdraw his confession? How could he know so many detail...

A German citizen on trial in an American court: This unusual constellation throws an interesting light on the divergent features of the two legal systems. In the eighth episode, the two hosts talk about the role of criminal defense lawyers in court, and how the public perception of the trial has had a lasting impact on Jens Soering. How should the proceedings against him in 1990 be assessed today,...

“A witness is the worst kind of evidence!” That‘s what Judge Ralph Guise-Ruebe says in this episode, and he explains why. At Soering’s trial, witness Donald Harrington claimed to have seen bandages on Soering’s hands and a black eye on his face at the funeral of Derek and Nancy Haysom. A mystery for the investigators and even for the victims’ relatives, since no one else noticed these injuries. Ho...

Carelessness or malfeasance? Years after Jens Soering’s conviction, various new pieces of evidence came to light. The jury at his trial was never told about the results of a luminol test on the getaway car, chief investigator Chuck Reid did not testify as a witness - on top of that: in 2016 the existence of a drawn up FBI perpetrator profile from 1985 is denied.  Procedural errors by the court in...

“It fits Soering like a glove” — that’s what the prosecutor told the jury about a sock print found at the crime scene. After the trial one of the jurors confirmed that Jens Soering was only found guilty because of a sock print called LR3. But how does Judge Ralph Guise-Ruebe see this piece of evidence today? Was it “junk science” or conclusive proof of guilt? How much weight should sock print anal...

“DNA tests solve the case.” How often do we read headlines like this today? In the 2020s, DNA plays an essential role in criminal investigations and trials. But in the Jens Soering case, new DNA findings and expert opinions are hotly contested decades after the trial and years after his release. Does the genetic evidence from 2022 say something different than the serological evidence in 1990? What...

Showdown of the former lovers in court: During the three-week trial in June 1990, Jens Soering and Elizabeth Haysom meet again for the first time since their arrest in 1986. Their encounter takes place in front of the cameras. Elizabeth Haysom takes the stand as the prosecution’s star witness. But how reliable is her testimony? Can you believe a witness who makes a deal with the prosecutor and has...

Since his trial in 1990, Jens Soering has insisted that his false confession was intended to protect his girlfriend at the time, Elizabeth Haysom, from execution. Do people really confess to murders and accept long prison sentences for others? In the second episode of this podcast, the focus is not only on Soering’s confessions but also on the interrogation methods used at the time. What types of...

A fair trial or a witch-hunt? The court proceedings against Jens Soering became a public show trial and media spectacle. Was the German honors student presented as a convenient fall guy? Was Judge William Sweeney really biased? How did the jury reach its guilty verdict? The images of the chubby-cheeked German in front of an American court are deeply etched in public memory. What role does a judge...

In June 2023, Daniela Hillers is heading to Washington for a trip back in time. The shocking double murder of Derek and Nancy Haysom in 1985 rocked the peaceful town of Lynchburg in the state of Virginia. The suspects in this case are Elizabeth Haysom, the daughter, and her then-boyfriend, Jens Söring, the son of a German diplomat. Their hasty departure from the USA raised suspicions that they mig...

The trailer for "The Jens Soering Case: A New Verdict" Cold-blooded killer or victim of injustice? Naive nerd and lifesaver or calculated double murderer of his then-girlfriend's parents? In this 10-part podcast series, the two hosts, Daniela Hillers and Ralph Guise-Ruebe, take a critical look at the murder case from the 1980s: the murder of the Haysom couple in Virginia in 1985, which for decades...