Death Penalty

Did Top Texas Judge’s Testimony Open Door to Wrongful Death Suit?

Contending that a top Texas appellate judge misled a federal appeals court that dismissed a wrongful death claim by the wife and daughter of an executed inmate, a civil rights group has asked a federal judge to reopen the case . It concerns a controversial refusal by Texas Court of…

Nov 6, 2009 6:10 PM CST

Defense Lawyer Says Executed Client Was Guilty in Texas Arson

Weighing in on the side of his client’s former wife and in-laws, a criminal defense lawyer who represented a man executed in a controversial Texas death-penalty case now says that defendant Cameron Todd Willingham set a 1991 fire that killed his children. “There was no question whatsoever that he was…

Oct 28, 2009 8:39 PM CDT

Man Accused of Setting Forest Fire Faces 5 Murder Charges in Heart-Attack Deaths

A California man accused of setting a massive 2003 forest fire by throwing a lighted road flare from his vehicle in the San Bernardino Mountains has also been charged with first-degree murder concerning the deaths of five men who suffered heart attacks allegedly brought about by the stress of fleeing…

Oct 23, 2009 6:49 PM CDT

High Court: 7th Circuit Too Hasty in Denying Death Row Inmate’s Claims

The U.S. Supreme Court has ordered the courts to consider the unresolved claims of an Indiana death row inmate convicted of murdering his brother and three others. Joseph Corcoran had raised five issues in a habeas appeal, including claims that prosecutors committed misconduct at his sentencing and that he should…

Oct 20, 2009 4:08 PM CDT

Did Man Confess Before Much-Debated Execution? Former Wife May Think So

In a new twist on a controversial case involving what some believe was the execution of an innocent man for setting the 1991 fire that killed his children, it is now being reported that Cameron Todd Willingham may have made comments amounting to a confession shortly before his own death.…

Oct 16, 2009 7:39 PM CDT

Court to Weigh Whether Lawyer’s Bad Deportation Advice Merits Plea Withdrawal

A lawyer was wrong when he advised his client that a felony marijuana plea won’t result in deportation, but was he ineffective under the Sixth Amendment? The U.S. Supreme Court will consider that question today in a case that contends the bad advice merits withdrawal of the guilty plea. Jose…

Oct 13, 2009 2:28 PM CDT

High Court Denies Appeals Involving Pledge, Death Penalty, Insider Trading

A Louisiana death row inmate who claims she shouldn’t be executed because she suffers from fetal alcohol syndrome is one of several litigants whose cases were denied review today by the U.S. Supreme Court. According to SCOTUSblog, “a number of significant new cases were denied review” today. Lawyers for death…

Oct 5, 2009 4:43 PM CDT

6th Circuit Stays Execution of Ohio Inmate Due to Lethal Injection Concerns

A federal appeals court has stayed the execution of an Ohio inmate until a federal appeals court can hear arguments over the state’s lethal injection process. The Cincinnati-based 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stayed the execution of Lawrence Reynolds, who was scheduled to die on Thursday, according to the…

Oct 5, 2009 3:23 PM CDT

D.C. Sniper’s Alleged Shoplifting Costs Gun Shop Owner His License

A federal judge in Washington state has agreed that the owners of a gun shop from which a rifle used in 2002’s fatal D.C. sniper shootings allegedly was shoplifted should not get back their licenses to sell firearms. Attorney James Frush of Seattle, who represents Brian Borgelt and his former…

Sep 29, 2009 6:42 PM CDT

Jessica Biel to Portray Suburban Chicago Lawyer

The actress Jessica Biel will portray a suburban Chicago lawyer in a movie about attorney-client privilege and the defense of a serial killer. Lawyer Kathleen Zellner says the film will be about killer Larry Eyler’s confessions to 21 murders besides the one that landed him in prison, according to a…

Sep 21, 2009 6:29 PM CDT

Despite Inmate’s Efforts to Help, Executioners Couldn’t Find Suitable Vein

An Ohio inmate has gotten a week’s reprieve after an execution team was unable to find a usable vein for a lethal injection, despite his efforts to help. Romell Broom had been sentenced to death for the rape and murder of a 14-year-old girl. The execution team spent more than…

Sep 16, 2009 6:01 PM CDT

Judge’s Affair With Prosecutor Raised Too Late; Appeals Court Denies New Trial

Despite a now-admitted affair between the prosecutor and the judge in his capital murder trial, Charles Dean Hood’s conviction won’t be overturned. Because he waited too long to challenge his murder conviction, Hood should not be retried, a divided Texas Court of Criminal Appeals panel has ruled. However, the issue…

Sep 16, 2009 5:49 PM CDT

Ex-Priest and Defense Attorney Uses ‘Pamphlet Power’ Against Death Penalty

A former Catholic priest who left his Jesuit order at age 52 to marry and become a California defense attorney is now retired, at age 69. But Paul Comiskey is still busy, using the “pamphlet power” that helped promote his former law practice to oppose the death penalty, reports the…

Sep 16, 2009 5:23 PM CDT

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon to Portray Morgan Lewis Lawyers

Two partners from Morgan, Lewis & Bockius who managed to win an acquittal on retrial for their death row client racked up another success this month in a related ruling by a federal appeals court. Touchstone Pictures has signed a deal to produce a movie on the case, according to…

Aug 25, 2009 6:11 PM CDT

Expert Hits Arson Finding in Case that Led to Defendant’s Execution

A nationally known expert has concluded that a fire was not arson, a finding that contradicted trial testimony that led to the conviction and execution of a Texas man. The expert, Craig Beyler, reviewed the case of Cameron Todd Willingham for the Texas Forensic Science Commission, created to investigate allegations…

Aug 25, 2009 11:47 AM CDT