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April 15, 2007
Dallas Morning News calls for death to die in Texas
Though I doubt this development will matter much politically, it still is noteworthy that today the Dallas Morning News has this editorial entitled "Death no more: It's time to end capital punishment." Emphasizing innocence concerns, here is a portion of the pitch:
And that uncomfortable truth [about an executed man's possible innocence] has led this editorial board to re-examine its century-old stance on the death penalty. This board has lost confidence that the state of Texas can guarantee that every inmate it executes is truly guilty of murder. We do not believe that any legal system devised by inherently flawed human beings can determine with moral certainty the guilt of every defendant convicted of murder.
That is why we believe the state of Texas should abandon the death penalty ― because we cannot reconcile the fact that it is both imperfect and irreversible.
Flaws in the capital criminal justice system have bothered troubled us for some time. We have editorialized in favor of clearer instructions to juries, better counsel for defendants, the overhaul of forensic labs and restrictions on the execution of certain classes of defendant. We have urged lawmakers to at least put in place a moratorium, as other states have, to closely examine the system. And yet, despite tightening judicial restrictions and growing concern, the exonerations keep coming, and the doubts keep piling up without any reaction from Austin.
From our vantage point in Dallas County, the possibility of tragic, fatal error in the death chamber appears undeniable. We have seen a parade of 13 men walk out of the prison system after years ― even decades ― of imprisonment for crimes they didn't commit. Though not death penalty cases, these examples ― including an exoneration just last week ― reveal how shaky investigative techniques and reliance on eyewitnesses can derail the lives of the innocent.
Accompanying this editorial are these additional items:
- This long article entitled "A death penalty slowdown, but not in Texas"
- This extended counter-point entitled "Opposing a death penalty repeal"
- This cool graphic with key death penalty statistics in Texas
- This basic chart showing how Texas dominates in total executions in the modern era
April 15, 2007 at 08:54 AM | Permalink
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Comments
Personally I wish the News were more focused on the criminal justice issues actually in play politically right now at the Texas Lege. They certainly put together an informative DP package, but you're 100% right it won't matter politically. That op-ed and $2 might get you a coffee at the Starbucks ... as long as you don't order one of those fancy ones.
Posted by: Gritsforbreakfast | Apr 15, 2007 9:57:34 AM
This letter is to update you about the case of Lakeith Amir-Sharif (“Sharif“) who is currently awaiting trials April 21, 2008 on trumped up charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, to wit: a car, and stalking; the latter charge is 3 year old and has not been reset for trial as of this date due to the fact the indictment obtained by the racist and corrupt administration of former D.A. Bill Hill is unlawful and statutorily invalid because the requisites for charging Sharif with Stalking don‘t exist. Newly-elected District Attorney Craig Watkins has been made aware of all of these facts prior to and since his election, but nothing has been done to uphold the law and U.S. Constitution by ending this miscarriage of justice, and thus prevent another innocent man from being railroaded to prison like so many others have been done.
These charges against Sharif lack a lawful or factual foundation because they’re based on lies, revenge, police, prosecution and judicial misconduct, yet with the complicity of various other court officials, local and state politicians (many of whom are defendants in federal civil right lawsuits filed by “Sharif” filed over the horrible conditions and treatment of prisoners while he was in the Dallas County jail during the past 16-months) the Dallas County DA’s Office, headed by Craig Watkins, the first African-American elected to this position, continues to pursue this malicious prosecution at a cost to taxpayers that now exceeds a quarter of a million dollars, and counting.
It is becoming more and more obvious with each passing day that Sharif’s prosecution has nothing whatsoever to do with him supposedly having broken the law, but rather he is being persecuted for his constitutionally protected activities (i.e. his free speech found on numerous web sites & blogs, plus his federal civil right lawsuits that exposes and challenges the injustices within the Dallas County judiciary, the County Commissioners Office, the Dallas Sheriff’s Department, and the Dallas County Jail).
Few, if any, Texas media outlets or elected leaders in Dallas County or the Texas State Legislatures in Austin, have not heard about the persecution of Sharif and the wasteful spending of taxpayers money, the unethical acts and abuses of power by the judges, police, and others involved in Sharif’s cases in order to carry out this travesty of justice, yet none of them have had the courage nor decency to take a principled stance in the name of truth and justice and demand answers and an end to this egregious injustice.
To find some of the answers as to why there was a Fake Drug Scandal in Dallas, and why 15 recently exonerated citizens were railroaded to prison and why 400 plus others imprisoned citizens from Dallas County alone are claiming they were railroaded and that DNA testing will prove their innocence, you need to look no further than the case of Sharif and the many things we’ve pointed out to the world via MTWT’s website at:
www.angelfire.com/crazy4/texas/
http://youtube.com/watch?v=sXe40XLPGjk&feature=related.
www.angelfire.com/crazy4/texas/taxpayerquestions.html
www.angelfire.com/crazy4/texas/fakedrugsfakevictims.html
www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/pt/slideshows/2008/01/010308_exonerated
Your support is needed to end this gross perversion of justice in the case of “Sharif“, and other defendants like him, please visit MTWT’s and contact web mistress Kay Lee at [email protected] or Sharif at [email protected]
Posted by: Making The Walls Transparent | Feb 17, 2008 2:57:13 AM
The only thing you can expect from outlaws (aka anyone who lives in dalas, please cause another war so we can kill you)is injustice. You are not all Jesse James but something is so wrong with ya'lls heads that you pretend you are. Why? are you such cowards that you have to act like complete imbiciles to attract people, you are not fooling anyone, we just think you are so entertaining that we're willing to appease you to make the patriots keeps the wetbacks out, DO YOU'RE JOB!
Posted by: fuck dallas | Apr 28, 2008 11:49:54 PM
The only thing you can expect from outlaws (aka anyone who lives in dalas, please cause another war so we can kill you)is injustice. You are not all Jesse James but something is so wrong with ya'lls heads that you pretend you are. Why? are you such cowards that you have to act like complete imbiciles to attract people, you are not fooling anyone, we just think you are so entertaining that we're willing to appease you to make the patriots keeps the wetbacks out, DO YOU'RE JOB!
Posted by: fuck dallas | Apr 28, 2008 11:49:59 PM
