Opinion ID: 1867526
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Blom's Statement

Text: On September 8, Blom gave a statement to the police regarding his involvement in Poirier's abduction and murder. Before Blom started his interview with the police, his lead state defense counsel had an extended conversation with him in order to verify that Blom understood the consequences of what he was about to do. Blom verified on the record that his counsel had met with him for several hours between September 6 and September 8 and that he intended to give a statement, but that he first wanted his counsel to negotiate some terms on his behalf. Blom indicated that these terms were contained in the September 7 letter from the state and acknowledged that his counsel negotiated these terms on his behalf. He affirmed that his counsel advised him not to give a statement. [5] Later during the statement, Blom's federal defense counsel arrived and also verified with Blom that he was going through with this plea negotiation against his counsel's advice. In his statement, Blom admitted abducting Poirier by forcing her to leave DJ's Expressway and that he pushed her into his truck. He said he then drove Poirier to his property near Kerrick where he choked her to death. Blom stated that he threw Poirier's body in a fire pit on his property and burned the body using fence boards, but did not use an accelerant. During the statement, Blom affirmed, albeit somewhat equivocally, that the bones recovered by the police from his fire pit belonged to Poirier. He stated that he did not sexually assault Poirier, but that he may have been thinking about it. Throughout his statement, Blom was generally not forthcoming with information, claiming to not remember many details, including his interactions with Poirier. Immediately following Blom's statement, his counsel met with the news media. At this meeting, his lead state defense counsel announced that the parties had been in negotiations most of the day, the details of a letter of intent had been accepted, and [Blom] has admitted to both the kidnapping and the killing of Katie Poirier. Blom's state defense counsel said that Blom made the statement out of his feelings for the Poirier family and certainly out of the feelings for his own family, and that Blom wanted to get the matter behind him. State defense counsel noted that he objected to Blom giving the statement [b]ecause quite frankly in a plea bargain, both sides get something and I don't believe that Mr. Blom obtainedgot much in this agreement. Both state and federal defense counsel indicated that Blom's major concern was where he would serve his sentence, but there were, as state defense counsel said, other minor details in the agreement. As previously noted, Blom originally requested that he be imprisoned in either South Dakota or North Dakota. While the negotiations leading to the plea agreement were taking place, the district court was made aware of Blom's specific request as to where he would be imprisoned. According to a Bill of Particulars prepared by the court and presented to the Chief Public Defender for the Sixth Judicial District on September 27, 1999, Blom's state defense counsel and the state requested the court's assistance in exploring the possibility of meeting that condition with the Minnesota Department of Corrections. The court contacted the Deputy Commissioner of Corrections in charge of adult facilities who then took the matter directly to the Commissioner of Corrections. The commissioner then made arrangements with the North Dakota Commissioner of Corrections for Blom's placement in North Dakota. The court further explained in its Bill of Particulars that, after Blom's placement in North Dakota was arranged, the parties continued to meet through the 7th and during the 8th of September regarding other conditions of the plea agreement that did not need this court's assistance.