Brothers file civil lawsuit after being exonerated for 1987 murder

David, left, and Robert Bintz (Photos source: Wisconsin Department of Corrections)

GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Brothers Robert and David Bintz, who were exonerated after spending more than 20 years in prison for the 1987 murder of Sandra Lison, filed a federal civil rights lawsuit Monday accusing two former investigators of fabricating evidence, coercing a false confession and concealing evidence that could have cleared them.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, names former state Division of Criminal Investigation Special Agent Richard Luell, former Green Bay police detective Robert Haglund and the City of Green Bay as defendants. The brothers are seeking compensatory and punitive damages, attorney fees, costs and other relief.

The lawsuit alleges Luell and Haglund knowingly fabricated witness statements implicating the brothers in Lison’s murder, then used those statements to coerce David Bintz into giving a false confession. The complaint also alleges the investigators concealed evidence that could have cleared the brothers, relied on fabricated reports during the prosecution and caused them to be wrongfully convicted and held in custody for approximately 25 years. The allegations in the lawsuit have not been proven in court.

David and Robert Bintz were convicted in separate trials in 2000 and sentenced to life in prison. Their convictions were later vacated after advances in DNA testing identified another man as the source of biological evidence recovered from the crime scene, and prosecutors agreed they should be released. In 2025, the Wisconsin Claims Board awarded each brother the state’s maximum wrongful conviction payment of $25,000.

The lawsuit asserts multiple federal civil rights claims, including unlawful detention, malicious prosecution, fabrication and concealment of evidence, and the use of an allegedly coerced confession. It also seeks to hold the City of Green Bay responsible under Wisconsin law for the actions allegedly taken by its former detective while acting within the scope of his employment.