Post by CCADP on Aug 15, 2005 6:31:34 GMT -5
Execution of the innocent----Putting the death penalty on trial
972 men and women have been executed in states with the death penalty
since 1976. Last month one of them, Larry Griffin of St. Louis, got a
chance at a post-mortem reprieve.
Found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, he could soon be found innocent
beyond the grave. Missouri killed him by lethal injection at the Potosi
Correctional Center in 1995.
This remarkable case bears watching. It could not only affect the 52
inmates currently on death row in Missouri, but all 3,415 death row
inmates in the nation.
Griffin's case is being reopened 25 years after he was accused of the
drive-by murder he said he didnt commit. Victims-rights groups should want
to know what happens because they most of all should want to see the
guilty person - not just anyone - punished for violent crimes.
Evidence provided by the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund suggests
that not only was Griffin innocent of the crime that sent him to death
row, but he wasnt even there at the time.
The probe into the Griffin case was conducted over a year and was overseen
by University of Michigan law professor Samuel Gross, who worked with a
team of civil rights investigators in other states. Based on the review of
the case, the team presented a file that led St. Louis Circuit Attorney
Jennifer Joyce to reopen the case for further investigation.
Besides comments from a new witness who says Griffin wasnt there, the
civil rights investigators provided Joyce with the names of 3 men believed
to be responsible for the drive-by killing.
"The evidence of Larry Griffins innocence is much stronger than the
evidence we have on the identity of the actual killers," Gross said. "If
she (Joyce) concludes that Larry Griffin is innocent, I have no doubt that
she will say so."
Missouri is a conservative state with an ambitious and conservative
Republican governor who supports capital punishment. Nevertheless, Joyce
deserves plaudits for taking this courageous and legally responsible
stand.
A re-examination of this case will not bring Griffin back to life,
obviously, but it may result in clearing his name and bringing the real
killers of 19-year-old Quintin Moss to justice.
One problem with the death penalty is that it is irreversible. When
mistakes are made, there really is no way to correct them. Missouri may
have to admit that it killed the wrong man. If so, an apology wont be
enough.
"This may encourage other prosecutors and other government officials to
look seriously at cases where errors may have been made," Gross said. It
must. Execution is cruel and unusual punishment that doesnt reduce violent
crime.
This case is the best argument for a moratorium on executions in Missouri.
Illinois did that in 2000 when then-Gov. George Ryan commuted the
sentences of 167 death row inmates after appeals courts exonerated 13
inmates on death row. Ryan used to support the death penalty but evidence
of flaws in the system caused him to insist on a review of capital cases.
U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens spoke recently at an American
Bar Association meeting where he raised concerns about jury prejudice,
prosecutorial errors and "special risks of unfairness" in the appellate
process.
Stevens also said DNA evidence has shown "that a substantial number of
death sentences have been imposed erroneously." He added, "It indicates
that there must be some serious flaws in our administration of criminal
justice." Indeed.
If DNA evidence can be used to close cold cases, some decades old in
Kansas City, why shouldnt it be called upon in capital cases where such
forensic advances are a matter of life and death for the accused?
"Of course Larry Griffin was no angel," Gross said. "One of the real
criminals in this case went on to a prolific career as a hitman and
killed, by his own admission, 11 people." The 3 men believed to be the
real killers are currently serving life sentences for other murders in
Missouri.
In March, the Supreme Court wisely determined that executing persons under
age 18 is unconstitutional. And in June, the court overturned death
sentences of 4 inmates. The court is moving in the proper direction, but
that could change with the vacancy created by the retirement of Justice
Sandra Day OConnor.
While so many people are debating how this court defines the beginning of
life in the abortion debate, they must also ponder how it could redefine
the end of life on death row.
Griffin is African-American. Most death-row inmates - and victims - arent.
Of the 3,415 inmates on death row as of July 1, 1,553 are white, 1,432 are
black, 350 are Hispanic, 40 are Native American and 39 are Asian. Only 54
are women.
Missouri ranks 4th in the nation (Texas is No. 1) in executions. This is
nothing to be proud of. Neither is the possibility that Missouri killed a
man who maintained his innocence until his dying breath and who maybe was
telling the truth.
(source: Opinion, Rhonda Lokeman, Kansas City Star)
972 men and women have been executed in states with the death penalty
since 1976. Last month one of them, Larry Griffin of St. Louis, got a
chance at a post-mortem reprieve.
Found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, he could soon be found innocent
beyond the grave. Missouri killed him by lethal injection at the Potosi
Correctional Center in 1995.
This remarkable case bears watching. It could not only affect the 52
inmates currently on death row in Missouri, but all 3,415 death row
inmates in the nation.
Griffin's case is being reopened 25 years after he was accused of the
drive-by murder he said he didnt commit. Victims-rights groups should want
to know what happens because they most of all should want to see the
guilty person - not just anyone - punished for violent crimes.
Evidence provided by the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund suggests
that not only was Griffin innocent of the crime that sent him to death
row, but he wasnt even there at the time.
The probe into the Griffin case was conducted over a year and was overseen
by University of Michigan law professor Samuel Gross, who worked with a
team of civil rights investigators in other states. Based on the review of
the case, the team presented a file that led St. Louis Circuit Attorney
Jennifer Joyce to reopen the case for further investigation.
Besides comments from a new witness who says Griffin wasnt there, the
civil rights investigators provided Joyce with the names of 3 men believed
to be responsible for the drive-by killing.
"The evidence of Larry Griffins innocence is much stronger than the
evidence we have on the identity of the actual killers," Gross said. "If
she (Joyce) concludes that Larry Griffin is innocent, I have no doubt that
she will say so."
Missouri is a conservative state with an ambitious and conservative
Republican governor who supports capital punishment. Nevertheless, Joyce
deserves plaudits for taking this courageous and legally responsible
stand.
A re-examination of this case will not bring Griffin back to life,
obviously, but it may result in clearing his name and bringing the real
killers of 19-year-old Quintin Moss to justice.
One problem with the death penalty is that it is irreversible. When
mistakes are made, there really is no way to correct them. Missouri may
have to admit that it killed the wrong man. If so, an apology wont be
enough.
"This may encourage other prosecutors and other government officials to
look seriously at cases where errors may have been made," Gross said. It
must. Execution is cruel and unusual punishment that doesnt reduce violent
crime.
This case is the best argument for a moratorium on executions in Missouri.
Illinois did that in 2000 when then-Gov. George Ryan commuted the
sentences of 167 death row inmates after appeals courts exonerated 13
inmates on death row. Ryan used to support the death penalty but evidence
of flaws in the system caused him to insist on a review of capital cases.
U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens spoke recently at an American
Bar Association meeting where he raised concerns about jury prejudice,
prosecutorial errors and "special risks of unfairness" in the appellate
process.
Stevens also said DNA evidence has shown "that a substantial number of
death sentences have been imposed erroneously." He added, "It indicates
that there must be some serious flaws in our administration of criminal
justice." Indeed.
If DNA evidence can be used to close cold cases, some decades old in
Kansas City, why shouldnt it be called upon in capital cases where such
forensic advances are a matter of life and death for the accused?
"Of course Larry Griffin was no angel," Gross said. "One of the real
criminals in this case went on to a prolific career as a hitman and
killed, by his own admission, 11 people." The 3 men believed to be the
real killers are currently serving life sentences for other murders in
Missouri.
In March, the Supreme Court wisely determined that executing persons under
age 18 is unconstitutional. And in June, the court overturned death
sentences of 4 inmates. The court is moving in the proper direction, but
that could change with the vacancy created by the retirement of Justice
Sandra Day OConnor.
While so many people are debating how this court defines the beginning of
life in the abortion debate, they must also ponder how it could redefine
the end of life on death row.
Griffin is African-American. Most death-row inmates - and victims - arent.
Of the 3,415 inmates on death row as of July 1, 1,553 are white, 1,432 are
black, 350 are Hispanic, 40 are Native American and 39 are Asian. Only 54
are women.
Missouri ranks 4th in the nation (Texas is No. 1) in executions. This is
nothing to be proud of. Neither is the possibility that Missouri killed a
man who maintained his innocence until his dying breath and who maybe was
telling the truth.
(source: Opinion, Rhonda Lokeman, Kansas City Star)