Re: 4/25/01 - NH Register: Van de Velde on Jovin slaying: 'Killer still out there'
Van de Velde on Jovin slaying: 'Killer still out there'
Randall Beach, Register Staff April 25, 2001
[picture]
Former Yale lecturer James Van de Velde (left) says he should be dropped from a pool of suspects in the Jovin (right) murder case.
NEW HAVEN — James Van de Velde is relying on prayer, marathon running and the support of longtime friends as he tries to overcome the lingering shadows of suspicion in Yale’s most notorious homicide.
Van de Velde, the only person ever named by police as being in the "pool of suspects" in the December 1998 slaying of Yale senior Suzanne Jovin, is demanding that police finally lift him out of that hot water.
During a four-hour interview with three New Haven Register reporters, Van de Velde called the police investigation of the slaying "a joke," and some of their actions "pure bunk."
Van de Velde, who now lives in Virginia and works at the Pentagon, said he finally agreed to speak with the Register after two years of refusing such requests because he is weary of watching the criminal justice system fail.
"My policy now is I will talk to anybody about anything," he said at the end of the long session. "The system is not working."
Although the interview was conducted in a conference room at the New Haven office of his attorney, David Grudberg, Van de Velde was alone for the entire session.
Van de Velde turned down reporters’ request to tape the session, saying, "There are three of you guys to take notes." He also declined to be photographed by the Register.
Dressed in a suit, blue shirt and purple tie, Van de Velde sometimes consulted a series of file folders to answer questions but displayed an encyclopedic memory of dates relating to the case.
While his manner was usually stern and business-like, he occasionally offered humorous asides. Recalling how he once sent somebody a photo of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and wrote on it, "Thanks for being one of my biggest supporters," Van de Velde said, "Despite what you read in the papers, I’m actually a pretty funny guy."
When asked whether he can rebuild his career and reputation, Van de Velde, 41, replied, "Yes, I will."
He added, "I believe I’m actually a better person than I was" before he became a murder suspect. "There’s something about suffering that makes one stronger.
"I’m more circumspect, more careful not to jump to conclusions, to judge others," he said.
Van de Velde, who was raised a Roman Catholic, said, "Maybe like the pruning makes a vine stronger, there is a higher purpose at work" in his struggle.
"I seem to be a small beacon of suffering, of false accusation for many others," he said. "My life has touched many other peoples’ lives — and that’s profoundly moving."
But he got upset when he discussed the actions of New Haven police, Yale administrators and the media, including the New Haven Register.
"Your concern for the people of New Haven should have been much higher," he told the reporters. "A murderer is free. This case is a fiasco."
When Van de Velde was directly asked in a follow-up e-mail: "Did you kill Suzanne Jovin?" he replied, "It astounds me that you are asking me this question today, after 22 months of investigation have revealed not a single reason to suspect me. ... Wake up!"
After answering "No" (he did not kill Jovin), Van de Velde said, "any suggestion that I had is outrageous, sick and utterly ignorant of the facts."
Van de Velde described his current job de-classifying documents at the Pentagon as "multiple levels beneath where my career was. ... It’s a very simple, straight-forward job that I never would have done before my life was destroyed."
He said there is no reason why he cannot one day realize his goal of being a TV analyst, as long as New Haven police "do the right thing" and drop him from its list of suspects.
Van de Velde is trying to get re-hired by Yale, despite saying its officials have acted "shamefully" and helped "keep the murderer of a Yale student free."
He said since the time his lecturing contract was not renewed after spring 1999, he has applied to Yale for three different jobs: assistant dean, assistant provost and his old position as political science lecturer. The only response, he said, was a form letter: "Thank you for your application ... "
Asked why he wants to return to Yale and New Haven when he remains a slaying suspect, Van de Velde said, "People should be given the opportunity to do the right thing. I’m giving Yale a chance to do that ... I am comfortable here. This is my home."
When asked about his social life, Van de Velde hesitated and said, "I have a group of the greatest friends a man can possibly have."
He added, "Of course I’ve lost dozens of professional acquaintances" because of the investigation. "If all of your acquaintances evaporate, you have a problem building a career and moving forward."
Van de Velde, a longtime runner, took up marathon running in the past year and finished the San Diego Marathon in 4 hours, 10 minutes. He said running a marathon is "a test of my mental strength. My enjoyment is found in accomplishing a challenging physical and mental goal."
Several times Van de Velde referred to himself as "a man of integrity and honor," and bristled when asked why he didn’t call a lawyer during four hours of police questioning four days after the slaying.
"Because I had nothing to fear!" he said, raising his voice. "I had nothing to hide!"
Asked what he would say to Suzanne Jovin’s parents, Tom and Donna Jovin, Van de Velde said, "I have enormous sympathy for the Jovin family — even more so because I believe they’ve been manipulated and lied to by the New Haven police."
When asked to respond, Tom Jovin said in an e-mail from his home in Germany: "The Jovin family has no reason at this time to add to or retract statements made in public about the teaching deficiencies experienced by our daughter Suzanne at Yale College and the conduct of the investigation of her murder."
The Jovins previously said their daughter had been troubled by Van de Velde’s lack of assistance and mentoring on her senior thesis. Van de Velde said he kept her waiting just two days, then gave her detailed feedback on her essay.
The Jovins, who maintain they don’t know who killed their daughter, have said they are satisfied with authorities’ attempts to solve the case.
Meanwhile, Van de Velde said he spoke recently with Andrew Rosenzweig, the famed private investigator hired by Yale in a bid to crack the case. In an e-mail, Van de Velde said, "I was happy and eager to speak with Mr. Rosenzweig, though I can offer no details on the discussion."
When asked if he hopes Rosenzweig can clear his name, Van de Velde replied, "I pray every day for this."
©New Haven Register 2001
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