If you spent any part of the last decade glued to your TV watching Making a Murderer, you probably have a very specific image of Steven Avery. You see the beard, the orange jumpsuit, and that salvage yard in Manitowoc County. But it's 2026 now. The documentary hype has mostly faded into the background noise of true crime history, yet the legal battle is still grinding away in the Wisconsin court system.
Honestly, the biggest misconception is that Avery's case is "over" because the Netflix cameras stopped rolling. It’s not. He is still fighting, and he’s doing it from a different place than where he started.
The Current Reality: Where is Steven Avery Now?
Right now, Steven Avery is incarcerated at the Fox Lake Correctional Institution in Wisconsin. He isn't at Waupun anymore; he was moved to Fox Lake back in 2022. This place is a medium-security facility, which is a bit of a change of pace from the maximum-security walls of Waupun.
Life for him basically consists of the same monotonous routine that has defined his last two decades. He spends a lot of time on the phone. His former fiancée, Sandy Greenman, has mentioned in past interviews that he’s a "model inmate" who doesn't really get into trouble with guards. He answers letters from supporters and stays updated on the outside world through his legal team.
He’s 63 years old now. Think about that. He’s spent more of his adult life behind bars than out of them, considering his previous 18-year wrongful conviction. Despite everything, those close to him say he remains strangely optimistic. He doesn't view his life sentence as a finality. He thinks he’s coming home.
The 2026 Legal Landscape: Zellner’s Long Game
Kathleen Zellner is still his lawyer. She hasn't quit. Some people thought she’d move on after the initial Netflix fame died down, but she’s been filing motion after motion.
The most recent drama involves a witness named Thomas Sowinski. He was a paperboy back in 2005. He claims he saw Avery’s nephew, Bobby Dassey, pushing Teresa Halbach’s RAV4 onto the salvage yard property with another man. This is a huge deal for the defense because it suggests the car was planted.
However, the Wisconsin courts haven't exactly been welcoming. In early 2025, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals rejected Avery's request for a new trial based on this "newly discovered evidence." They basically said it wasn't enough to change the outcome of the original trial. Zellner immediately pushed it toward the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
Why the Courts Keep Saying No
- Procedural Bars: Wisconsin law is notoriously strict. You can't just keep bringing up new ideas. You have to prove why you didn't bring them up the first time.
- The DNA Evidence: Even with the "paperboy" testimony, the state still points to Avery's blood in the RAV4 and Halbach's key in his bedroom.
- The Burden of Proof: It’s way harder to get out of prison than it is to stay out. Once a jury says "guilty," the legal mountain becomes almost impossible to climb.
The Brendan Dassey Factor
You can't talk about Steven without mentioning his nephew, Brendan Dassey. They aren't in the same prison. Brendan is over at the Oshkosh Correctional Institution.
There’s a weird legal wall between them. They aren't allowed to communicate. While Steven is fighting through forensic evidence and new witnesses, Brendan’s path has mostly been focused on the way his confession was taken. His team tried to take it all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, but they declined to hear it. For now, both men are essentially in a holding pattern.
What Really Happened With the $36 Million?
People always forget the civil suit. Before the murder charge, Avery was suing Manitowoc County for $36 million for his 1985 wrongful conviction. He eventually settled for $400,000.
Most of that money went straight to his defense lawyers (Dean Strang and Jerry Buting) for the murder trial. He basically used the compensation from one injustice to defend himself against the next one. Today, he’s basically broke. His legal defense relies heavily on Zellner’s firm and the support of people who still believe the evidence was planted.
Misconceptions You Should Probably Drop
First off, Steven Avery is not a "celebrity" in prison in the way people think. He’s just another inmate in a green uniform. He eats cafeteria food, he has a job within the facility, and he waits for the mail.
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Second, the case isn't "stuck." It’s moving, just at a glacial pace. The legal system moves in years, not episodes. Every time a motion is denied, it opens a door for a different kind of appeal. It’s a game of chess where the state has all the pieces and Avery is playing with a single pawn.
The Path Forward: What Happens Next?
If you're looking for a "win" for Avery, it won't happen overnight. Here is the realistic roadmap for the next few months:
- Wisconsin Supreme Court Review: Zellner is currently trying to get the highest court in the state to look at the Sowinski evidence. If they refuse to hear it, that specific avenue is essentially dead.
- New Forensic Testing: Zellner has been pushing for more advanced DNA testing on items that weren't fully explored in 2007. This is her "Hail Mary."
- Public Pressure: While it doesn't change the law, the "Making a Murderer" legacy keeps the case in the public eye, which sometimes forces a more careful review by officials who don't want the bad PR.
The reality of where Steven Avery is now is a quiet, medium-security cell in Fox Lake. He’s an aging man waiting for a court to admit a mistake that the state has spent twenty years defending. Whether you think he's guilty or innocent, the legal machinery around him is currently at a stalemate.
If you want to stay updated, the best thing to do is follow the Wisconsin Court System's public access portal (WSCCA) for Case No. 2023AP001556. That's where the real story is happening now, far away from the Netflix cameras.