Sept. 14
TEXAS: Will Another Innocent Woman be Executed?----The Texas Killing Machine Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, but it was the callousness, disorganization and racism that resulted in countless lives being lost. Now the state of Texas is set to take another casualty-Frances Newton. Frances is set to be executed in Texas on September 14th. She, like many of the victims in Louisiana, is a poor, Black woman who has been failed by our government. So many of the victims in Louisiana could have gotten out if they had money, if they had a car, if they had help and support. One could say the same of Frances. If she had a decent trial attorney, she most likely never would have been convicted, let alone sentenced to death. If she had the money to have had a full investigation done prior to trial, and if she wasn't left prey to the forensic lab that took a main piece of evidence and contaminated it by sticking it in with a bunch of other clothing, Frances would likely not be facing an execution date. Like many of those left to die in Louisiana, Francis is one of the people most vulnerable in our criminal justice system-she is Black and poor. As Bryan Stevenson, an anti-death penalty attorney and outspoken capital punishment opponent, puts it, "You're more likely to get the death penalty if you're poor, black and innocent, than if you're rich, white and guilty." Now, Frances' new attorney has unraveled the case and shown that Frances is-by all accounts-innocent. So why is Governor Perry going forward with the execution? Hasn't there been enough death already? What's more, the reasons that compelled Perry to grant Frances a stay back in December 2004 have only grown. Frances Newton was accused of killing her husband and children for the "insurance money" back in 1987. But Frances' new lawyer, David Dow, the head of the Innocence Network at the University of Houston Law Center, has discovered evidence that proves otherwise. Frances believes her husband was killed by a drug dealer, who he owed $1,500. Frances' brother thought this as well, and told police that he could lead them to the drug dealer's home. But the police never investigated that lead. And even though Frances passed a lie detector test, even though she had no blood on her clothes or car (in what was a very bloody crime), and no gunpowder residue was found on her hands, the police arrested her. According to prosecutors, Frances was supposed to have killed her family, cleaned up all of the evidence, and then returned to the crime scene, all in 30 minutes. The gross incompetence with which this case was handled is hard to read about. Ron Mock, who was Frances' trial lawyer, did virtually no work on the case. On the day of trial, Mock could not name one witness he had interviewed. He called no witnesses. The parents of Frances' husband-a victim in the crime-asked to be called to testify on behalf of Frances, but they were never called. According to a recent article in the Austin Chronicle, "Ron Mock has since been brought before the state bar's disciplinary board at least 5 times on various charges of professional misconduct, for which he has been fined and sometimes suspended; he is currently suspended from practicing law until late 2007." Activists in Houston held a protest at Mock's house, and they plan to hold more protests. In Austin, activists plan to surround the governor's mansion in Texas with crime scene tape to indicate the real scene of the crime if the state proceeds with this execution. Our rescue and relief efforts were woefully inadequate in reaching out to the suffering and dying in Louisiana. And we see our elected officials having trouble admitting they did anything wrong. Far too often, we see the same stubbornness within our criminal justice system. Our constitution says that everyone has a right to effective council. Frances never got this. After 19 years, we should be able to give Frances the fair trial she is entitled to, but was denied. Frances' mother Jewel Nelms said in a recent interview, "I would ask the governor and Board of Pardons and Paroles to look at the facts in the case and make a true and fair judgment. Like they would want someone to do if it was their child. I'm thankful for the stay of execution in December, and I'm confident that when they see the new evidence that they will also realize that it really needs to go back to court." That would be the right thing to do. (source: Marlene Martin is national director of the Campaign to End the Death Penalty; CounterPunch) ******************************** Last-ditch efforts to save inmate----Black leaders predict dire consequences if Frances Newton is executed tonight Local black leaders warned Tuesday of divine and political repercussions if condemned killer Frances Newton is executed tonight in Huntsville. The warnings came during an emotional morning news conference at the Mickey Leland Federal Building downtown, during which U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee called on authorities to grant Newton a new trial. Jackson Lee, D-Houston, said she would also ask the nation's solicitor general to intervene in the case. "The American nation values life," she said, "and Frances Newton deserves to have her life spared. ... It's not a handout that Newton should have her day in court again." Jackson Lee likened the last-minute effort to save Newton to Texans who "through affection and love stood last at the Alamo" and declared that, "we're standing for the life of Texas." Newton, 40, is to be executed at 6 p.m. for the 1987 murders of her husband, Adrian, 23, and the couple's 7-year-old son and 21-month-old daughter to gain insurance benefits. She would be the 3rd woman executed in Texas since executions were resumed in 1982 and the 13th killer executed this year. She also would be the 1st black woman put to death in Texas during that time. Newton's chances to escape death by injection have narrowed to a last-minute appeal before the U.S. Supreme Court and an appeal to Gov. Rick Perry to grant a 30-day stay of execution. Last December, Perry granted Newton an execution-day stay that provided 4 months to retest evidence crucial to her case. In the past week, petitions filed with the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles have been rejected. Texas Innocence Network attorneys David Dow and Jared Tyler, both University of Houston law professors, have centered their efforts to save Newton's life on claims that multiple pistols were seized as evidence the night of the killings. Those weapons, they contend, could have been switched during ballistics testing, thereby wrongly indicating that the gun Newton hid in a vacant house after the shootings was the murder weapon. Newton has said she removed the pistol from her apartment and hid it to keep her husband from getting into a violent encounter with drug dealers. Much of the evidence and testimony supporting their multiple-pistol theory, defense attorneys say, was developed after Newton's initial trial. Assistant District Attorney Roe Wilson denies that more than one weapon was recovered. Tests on three occasions have identified the weapon Newton hid as the murder weapon, Wilson said. On Tuesday, Jackson Lee called upon Perry to grant a stay so that issues related to the pistol and other matters can be sorted out. Last week, the Court of Criminal Appeals declined to consider the defense team's gun arguments, contending they already had been reviewed and discounted. Nation of Islam Minister Robert Muhammad said Tuesday that he had completed a week of fasting and prayer for "God to move hearts and minds for justice." Muhammad repeated the charge that Newton's first trial attorney, Ron Mock, provided inadequate counsel. Mock, whose career reached a recent low when the State Bar of Texas suspended him, failed to interview witnesses or perform other basic research in the case, appeals lawyers have claimed. The Court of Criminal Appeals, however, has determined Newton received adequate representation. "Mock," Muhammad said, "has his own wing on death row." Noting that Houston and Texas had generated international goodwill by welcoming tens of thousands of Hurricane Katrina evacuees, he added that the state could "ruin that in one swoop" with Newton's execution. He warned, too, of divine retribution for what he deemed an unjust execution. "I fear for the state for what God might do," he said. "If the hurricane had traveled just 2 degrees west, it could have been here." Divine repercussions aside, Ovide Duncantell, director of the Black Heritage Society, predicted GOP overtures to blacks could fall flat if Perry, a Republican, fails to act. "There will be more damage to the Republican Party," he said. SHAPE director Deloyd Parker urged Perry to exercise caution in going ahead with Newton's execution. "We believe she's innocent," he said. "But if you kill her tomorrow and you find out later that she is innocent, there's nothing you can do to undo it. "Think about that, governor. Think about it." (source: Houston Chronicle) ****************************** Protesters expected for female execution Officials with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice aren't expecting a huge crowd or a hectic scene tonight for the execution of Frances Newton. Hundreds of media members from all over the world, plus conflicting groups like the Nation of Islam, Ku Klux Klan and New Black Panthers, have come to Huntsville for high-profile executions in the past. Except for a protest organized by the Texas Moratorium Network and more media at the scene tonight, TDCJ officials say they're expecting nothing out of the ordinary. "We recognize that this is a higher-profile execution than other ones we've had this year, and we do have a plan to up the security," explained TDCJ spokeswoman Michelle Lyons-Burnett. "We're expecting more protesters than usual and more media, but we don't know how much." Before Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast a little more than 2 weeks ago, TDCJ officials were preparing for a large gathering of protesters and media. Lyons-Burnett said it seems like Newton's case took a backseat to Katrina recently with reporters focusing more of their energy on the hurricane and its aftermath than the plight of a woman on death row for the 1987 fatal shooting of her 7-year-old son, her 21-month-old daughter and her 23-year-old husband at their Houston apartment. "We're not expecting any type of protest to the extent of the Gary Graham and Karla Faye Tucker executions," Lyons-Burnett said. "We've heard rumors that Jesse Jackson plans to be here, but those rumors have not been substantiated." Huntsville Police Chief Jean Sanders said she is willing to help with security tonight, but she's not expecting any requests for assistance. "We're not going to have any additional officers over at the Walls Unit. The bike patrol will be in the area, but we have no reason to believe they will need any additional security there," Sanders said Tuesday morning. Newton will be housed at the Goree Unit today until she is transported to the Huntsville "Walls" Unit, where the execution is scheduled to be carried out at 6 p.m. "She did not request a last meal," Lyons-Burnett said. 5 members of Newton's family - her mother, father, 2 sisters and a brother - are on the witness list, as are 2 of her husband's cousins. (source: Huntsville Item) ************************ Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee (18th District, Texas) Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee Demands Reprieve from Execution for Frances Newton Frances Newton set to be executed Wednesday; Congresswoman Jackson Lee asks for reprieve based on evidence of multiple weapons found Today, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee reiterated her request to State judicial officials for a stay of execution in the case of Frances Newton, whose execution is scheduled for Wednesday. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday refused to stop the execution and the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles voted 7-0 not to recommend that Governor Perry commute the sentence to life in prison. Newton was convicted for the murder on April 9, 1987 of her husband, Adrian Newton, 23, and their son, Alton, 7, and daughter, Farah, 2 for purpose of collecting life insurance policy proceeds for their deaths. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, member of the House Judiciary Committee, has been working with the Texas Innocence Network to get a favorable recommendation by the Board and expressed disappointment in the Board's recommendation. "The case of the prosecution was fraught with numerous and substantial discrepancies. Without additional time to conduct further investigation, there is a chance that an innocent woman will be executed," stated Congresswoman Jackson Lee. "Considerable evidence exists to case doubt upon the guilt of Frances Newton. First, ballistics evidence used in the trial was processed by the Houston Police Department Crime Laboratory. We know from the vast accounts of erroneous prosecutions like Josiah Sutton and failed scientific analyses that its work is no longer credible or exclusively relied upon." This morning, she discussed this decision and the impact that it, along with new federal legislation, will have on future capital cases in Texas in a press conference held at the Mickey Leland Federal Building [in Houston]. Regarding the relevance of federal legislation to the Newton case, Jackson Lee stated, "The provision that concerns Frances Newton the most is Title IV, which establishes rules for post-conviction DNA testing of Federal prison inmates and requires the preservation of biological evidence in Federal criminal cases while the defendant remains incarcerated. It provides incentive grants to States that adopt adequate procedures for providing post-conviction DNA testing and preserving biological evidence. Additionally, it authorizes funding to help States provide competent legal services for both the prosecution and the defense in death penalty cases and provides funds for post-conviction DNA testing." The dollars that this legislation authorizes can be used to improve the function of Texas crime labs. We must diminish the number of erroneous prosecutions and executions, and we must have more accountability in the enforcement of the law. Hopefully, a reprieve will be granted today that will allow Frances Newton to prove her innocence so that the true perpetrator can be brought to justice," concluded Congresswoman Jackson Lee. ###
