Da Crittah:
How about a substitution of: thus; therefore; so; ergo; consequently; subsequently; correspondingly; accordingly? Any of those work and hence get me off the hook? :-)
Well, yeah, they *would* have... Except, of course, you leapt back on it! :-)

Anyway, I assume you got the reference: It was to the Boulder (Wasn't it?), CO, Police Dept -- who claimed that someone's (her parents, IIRC?) use of that phrase "proved" that they were the ones who (abducted and later?) murdered that kid, Jon Benet Something (Ramsey?). (Having, in the interim, sent a ransom demand or something, containing the "unique" -- yeah, right! -- phrase "and hence".) You may have seen me, too, use it, only the other day -- I guess that I kind of reminded myself of it, then, and hence pounced on it now...

Anyway, that's the most moronic piece of police "evidence" I've ever heard of. Still pisses me off, apparently.