[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----ALABAMA

[Rick Halperin]

May 16


ALABAMA:

Condemned convicts deserve representation


The propriety of the death penalty in a civilized society dedicated to the
ideal of justice has been debated for decades. No agreement appears
imminent between the 2 sides.

But surely capital punishment advocates and opponents can agree on one
issue regarding its implementation: Defendants whose lives hang in the
balance are entitled to competent legal representation.

Apparently, that is not the case in Alabama.

Seven prominent members of the bar in our state  including 3 former
Alabama Supreme Court justices, 3 former State Bar presidents and a former
Criminal Appeals Court judge  filed a friend-of-the-court brief last week
urging the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case of 6 Alabama death-row
inmates who claim they were denied adequate representation.

"Alabama's legal system regarding the provision of counsel to indigent
death row inmates ... is in a state of crisis," the former judicial system
officials said.

Alabama is the only state that doesn't provide condemned inmates with
attorneys for post-conviction appeals, The Birmingham News reported in a
story on the filing.

Other states have established post-conviction defender programs or have
funds to assist indigent convicts with legal costs in the appeals process.

Regardless of how one feels about capital punishment, surely all can agree
that justice is the ultimate goal of the criminal justice system. And for
justice to prevail, prosecution and defense must be sufficiently
competent.

Anything less is the equivalent of vigilantism.

(source: Editorial, Decatur Daily)