A K-9 commander serving a life sentence for his wife's 1982 murder is using his first parole hearing to argue his innocence, citing newly uncovered FBI misconduct. Paul Kovacich, 76, contends that suppressed evidence debunks claims that he killed his German shepherd, Fuzz, weeks before his wife vanished. Her body has never been found.
The dog's death became a focal point for the FBI years after Janet Kovacich disappeared, as agents exhumed and analysed Fuzz's remains to prove her husband harboured violent tendencies. Kovacich argues this misled jurors into convicting him. He told the Associated Press: 'I would love to have the courts release me — not parole. I have something to prove — that I'm innocent.'
Kovacich's bid hinges on never-before-seen emails between a forensic anthropologist and retired FBI agent Christopher Hopkins, who used his personal Hotmail account to describe Kovacich as 'our bad guy' and discuss the 'need to demonstrate to the jury that he has a violent side.' The use of a private account excluded those emails from FBI servers and Brady material, which requires disclosure of potentially beneficial evidence to the defence.
The FBI declined to comment, but current and former agents told the AP the messages violate bureau policy. Hopkins told AP there was 'no exculpatory information in those emails.' David Tellman, the prosecutor, called the emails 'concerning' but argued they would not have changed the outcome of the trial. Prosecutors are opposing parole, citing Kovacich's failure to complete required domestic violence and anger control classes.
Janet Kovacich disappeared in 1982 after arguing with her husband and telling a friend she was afraid of him. Paul Kovacich, a former Placer County sheriff's deputy, told authorities he ran errands that morning and returned to find his wife missing. Detectives doubted his alibi but lacked evidence to charge him at the time. The case remained unsolved for decades until the FBI reopened it in 2005, leading to Kovacich's 2009 conviction.
