Affidavit of Dean Allen Cochrun

I, Dean Allen Cochrun, being duly sworn, hereby declare under penalty of perjury that the following is true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief:

1. I am a citizen of the United States and a resident of Sturgis, South Dakota.
2. I make this affidavit to document a series of events that led to my wrongful conviction and ongoing harassment by individuals acting in bad faith.
3. I maintain that I have always been innocent of the crimes for which I was accused and convicted.
4. The actions described below began in or around the year 2002 in Whitewood, South Dakota.
5. A law enforcement officer named Jerry Davidson initiated a campaign of harassment and misinformation against me. He spread false statements regarding my character and background to members of the local community.
6. During this time, Jerry Davidson communicated with a former classmate of mine, Mike Rear, and provided him with alleged information about my juvenile history.
7. Mike Rear then spoke with Jamie Chipowsky, my pregnant girlfriend at the time, and her mother Robin Chipowsky, relaying the same false information.
8. Jamie initially dismissed these rumors as untrue, as she and I had already discussed my past openly. However, Robin was unaware of this and took the information seriously.
9. I later learned that Mike provided both Robin and Jamie with Officer Davidson’s business card. While Jamie put it away and forgot about it, Robin contacted Davidson directly, which appears to have been the beginning of my legal and personal troubles.
10. At that time, Robin and her husband Andrew were seeking custody of Jamie’s son, Gabriel Damien Chipowsky, who had been diagnosed with autism. They argued that their greater financial resources made them better suited to raise him.
11. Jamie and I refused their request, believing it was in Gabriel’s best interest to remain with his mother.
12. Following this, false allegations of child abuse were made against me. I believe these reports were instigated by Robin and Andrew, with information provided or encouraged by Officer Davidson.
13. I further believe that certain individuals, including Jamie under pressure, were manipulated into believing that removing me from the picture would benefit her and the children.
14. Around December of 2002, under the influence and direction of her parents, Robin and Andrew Chipowsky, and acting upon the instructions provided by Officer Jerry Davidson, my then-partner Jamie was persuaded and coerced into filing a frivolous protection order against me. This was the first deliberate step in a broader plan orchestrated to separate us and establish a false legal pretext for future criminal allegations.
15. Shortly thereafter, and in direct violation of her own protection order, Jamie made contact with my mother, Linda Marie Cochrun, who then provided her with my uncle Bernard (“Bernie”) Albright’s phone number so that Jamie could reach me.
16. My uncle Bernie later contacted me, expressing urgency and relaying that Jamie was insistent on speaking with me directly. Against my better judgment — and unaware of the full extent of the manipulation taking place — I agreed to take her call.
17. During that phone conversation, Jamie told me that she never wanted to file the protection order and that she had been threatened by her parents, Robin and Andrew, who warned her that if she did not comply, they would file criminal charges against her. She also stated that they were actively planning to harm or kill me, and that she felt guilt and remorse for her involvement in their scheme.
18. Jamie expressed a desire to “fix” what had been done and said she feared for both our safety. Her words confirmed what I had suspected — that this was not merely a domestic dispute but a coordinated effort to destroy me under the guise of legal process.
19. Following the filing of the protection order, Jamie later appeared before the court and requested that it be dismissed, stating on the record that she had been pressured and coerced by her parents into filing it.
20. After the dismissal, Jamie told me in detail what her parents, Robin and Andrew Chipowsky, had said and the reasons they had given for turning law enforcement against me. I advised her to cease all contact with them, believing that continued communication would put both of us in danger.
21. Despite my warning, Jamie continued to speak with her parents. On one occasion, I overheard a telephone conversation between Jamie and her mother, Robin, in which Robin discussed what appeared to be a plan to cause me physical harm under the guise of a “hunting accident.” During that call, Robin mentioned a potential financial payment or death benefit that Jamie would receive if the plan succeeded.
22. The contents of that conversation deeply disturbed me and made clear that the situation had escalated far beyond a family dispute. I confronted Jamie immediately after overhearing the call, and although she denied intending to harm me, she did not refute that the conversation had taken place.
23. Fearing for my safety, I informed Jamie that I would seek my own protective order and that we needed to leave the state as soon as possible. I told her that her testimony about her parents’ actions would be required to support any petition for protection.
24. In December 2002, at our residence located at 2810 Elk Road, Apt A, City of Sturgis, State of South Dakota, United States, 57785 (jurisdiction), I was present in the living room with Jamie when a confrontation occurred that I describe below.
25. During that encounter I would describe the situation as a “Mexican standoff.” Both Jamie and I were in the living room at the time; I was aware that she was on the telephone while also speaking with members of her family. The atmosphere in the room was tense and confrontational.
26. While I was present and listening, Jamie spoke with her mother, Robin, and other family members. Based on my direct observations of the conversation and Jamie’s words and tone, I believed she was not repudiating her parents’ plan but rather acquiescing to it. In my presence she did not deny the contents of the call and gave indications—by what she said and how she said it—that she was willing to accept the proposed payment or benefits if the plan succeeded.
27. I interpreted Jamie’s statements and demeanor during that call as agreement with the scheme discussed by her parents to cause me harm (which they discussed as occurring under the guise of an “accident” and referenced a financial benefit in the event of my death). At the time I understood this to mean that Jamie prioritized the prospect of financial gain over my safety.
28. Immediately after overhearing the call and perceiving Jamie’s apparent agreement, I confronted her. The confrontation was silent and tense; both of us remained in the living room while Jamie continued on the phone. I then informed Jamie that I would seek a protective order, that we needed to leave the state, and that she would need to testify about her parents’ actions if we were to pursue protection. I also warned her to cease contact with her parents.
29. From that point forward, the situation deteriorated rapidly. Communications and actions by Robin and Andrew became increasingly aggressive and manipulative, suggesting a broader conspiracy to eliminate me or discredit me through legal and extralegal means.
30. In the months following these false reports, I began experiencing ongoing harassment, both in person and indirectly through rumors and social interference. The actions and statements made by Officer Jerry Davidson and those influenced by him damaged my reputation and isolated me from the community.
31. Around this time, I also noticed a shift in Jamie’s behavior and attitude. I believe she was being manipulated by external parties who sought to turn her against me.
32. I later came to understand that these individuals, including Robin and Andrew, had financial and custodial motives to remove me from Jamie’s life. They repeatedly told her that she and her children would be “better off” without me, and that my death would result in financial benefits through death compensation.
33. Based on my observations and subsequent evidence, I have reason to believe that there were discussions or plans made to harm me physically and to falsely implicate me in further criminal allegations.
34. These actions amounted to an orchestrated effort to destroy my life and credibility, utilizing law enforcement resources and private manipulation to achieve their objectives.
35. Despite having no legitimate evidence against me, certain individuals within the justice system chose to proceed with charges, ignoring both inconsistencies in the reports and proof of my innocence.
36. During the course of the investigation and prosecution, I was denied the right to a fair defense. Key evidence was ignored, exculpatory material was withheld, and statements made in my favor were either dismissed or misrepresented.
37. The process that led to my conviction was driven not by justice, but by malice and personal vendetta.
38. I firmly believe that Officer Jerry Davidson, along with others acting under his influence, engaged in misconduct, abuse of power, and perjury, contributing directly to my wrongful conviction.
39. As a result of these events, I was unjustly imprisoned, separated from my wife Jamie and my children, and subjected to psychological, social, and economic harm that continues to this day.
40. My wife also suffered mistreatment at the hands of the same system, which used her vulnerabilities and mental health struggles against her rather than offering assistance.
41. My children, including Trinity and Gabriel, were taken and exposed to trauma that has left lasting emotional scars. They, too, are victims of a system that acted in bad faith and failed to uphold its duty to protect innocent families.
42. The damage done to my name, my family, and my future cannot be undone by silence or complacency. I am submitting this affidavit not out of vengeance, but out of a moral and civic duty to expose the truth, so that justice may one day be restored — not only for me, but for all families who have suffered similar injustices.

I, Dean Allen Cochrun, affirm under penalty of perjury that the foregoing statements are true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief.