THE SEILER SAGA: Minneapolis lawyer is representing Seiler
10:43 PM 4/03/04
Patricia Simms, Barry Adams and Lisa Schuetz Wisconsin State Journal

Audrey Seiler, the UW-Madison student who last week faked her own abduction, is now being represented by a high-powered Minneapolis attorney. <

Randy Hopper, a partner with Zimmerman Reed and a litigator in the national anti-tobacco lawsuits, said Saturday he asked Keith and Stephanie Seiler and their friends to decline media interviews. <

"I don't want anyone talking to the media, including me," said Hopper, who teaches the Minnesota Institute of Legal Education's "Dealing with the Media" seminar. <

"What I'm urging people to do is to give the family and Audrey a few days. . . . Right now, I want my clients focused on their daughter." <

Hopper said the family still does not know the young woman's "prognosis." Family friends reported Friday that Seiler is receiving psychiatric treatment at a Madison hospital. <

Madison police spokesman Larry Kamholz said Seiler, 20, was in Madison but said she was free to leave whenever she wanted. "There is no restriction on Audrey," he said. "She is free to go back to Minnesota." <

Seiler's hometown is Rockford, Minn. <

Kamholz said the "serious part" of the investigation into the hoax is over, but he continued to dodge questions about whether Seiler acted alone, when and why police began believing she'd been abducted, when police first suspected her disappearance was a hoax, and why she did it. <

Hopper said he's had one conversation with the Madison Police Department, and intends to cooperate. <

No one, including the district attorney's office, has discussed charges with him. "We don't even know if a crime was committed," he said. "We're still assessing the facts." <

Dane County District Attorney Brian Blanchard said he began reviewing police reports Friday and expected to receive the rest of the reports by the end of the week. <

"I won't take any action until I get all the reports," Blanchard said. <

Madison defense attorney Chris Van Wagner said three possible charges could apply to a situation like Seiler's: two are misdemeanors, one is a felony. A judge could order restitution. <

A felony charge of obstruction could be considered if someone lied to an officer of the court - if someone lied to Blanchard, for example, in an interview. <

Misdemeanor charges include lying to police, fabricating evidence or obstructing first responders. <

At a press conference with Kamholz Saturday, Seiler's uncle, Scott Charlesworth-Seiler, thanked the community for its concern but provided no answers to the crucial questions at the heart of the case. <

"At this time the family does not wish to make any public statement," Charlesworth-Seiler said. "Their concern and focus is on Audrey." <

Kamholz refused to disclose what he and Audrey's father, Keith Seiler, discussed Friday, based on his feelings for the family. "Keith and I have a special relationship since (this) happened," Kamholz said. "It's an incredible family. They are incredible people. They are very strong." <

He said the city attorney's office will have to decide whether to try to recoup the costs of the investigation and search, acknowledging that it is climbing well above the original $75,000 estimate.