Texas Judge Goes to Trial Over Execution

RightinNYC said:

First, it's still not her problem - it's the attorney's responsibility to do their job.

Second, the fact that it turned out that way means that there's not really a due process issue - due process is results-oriented.

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What are you talking about? Results-oriented? Uhh no. It is process-oriented. If it was results-oriented, it would be called due results, not due process.

If it's results-oriented, then it's not actually due process at all. Why shouldn't police illegally search anyone they please? They'll probably turn up some illegal items on a few people. The results are what matters, right?

Given the democrats long history of treachery wrongly accusing republicans of crimes I feel justified assuming this is just another far left witch hunt.

jamesrage said:

This story is nothing but bull**** for scumbag sympathizers to use for their anti-death penalty campaign. Government offices have business hours just like regular offices.


The incompetence is on the executed scumbag's lawyers.I would think any lawyer would know proper procedures.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/18/us/18judge.html?_r=1
Judge Keller responds that the lawyers for the inmate, Michael Richard, a convicted murderer who made no claim of innocence, should have filed their paperwork with the assigned duty judge rather than trying to go through the clerk’s office.

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I have to agree with you 100% there.

This piece of filth was convicted in 1987 of breaking into a woman's home, rapeing her, then killing her. And the appeal was not on any kind of claim that he was innocent, only on the belief that lethal injection was "cuel and inhumane".

Hello, they had over 20 years to appeal on that! They had time and more time to make appeals, why wait until the last minute? To me incompetance is with his attorneys, who simply tried to wait until the last minute, in order to drag out some extra life for their murdering piece of filth client.

I have seen that kind of thing over and over again, and it always makes me sick. An appeal on the method of execution is something that should be filed months before the execution time, not hours. It is not like it is a surprise, and should be done in a timely manner.

I am a believer that unless some kind of new evidence is uncovered, or proof of misdeeds are discovered, there should be no last minute appeals. I am reminded of David Mason, a murderer who was executed in California in the Gas Chamber. His attourneys also tried a last minute appeal, stating that it was cruel and inhumane.

That case got a lot of attention at the time, because Mr. Mason was actually strapped in on 3 different times, only to be taken out and put back in his cell. The 9th Circus Court Of Appeals would grant a stay, only to be overturned by the US Supreme Court a short time later. Finally the Supreme Court made the unprecidented move in ordering the Circuit Court to no longer accept any other appeals.

But now the lawyers are trying to take down a judge for their dead murdering client. I say instead we give her a medal, for doing her job, and not breaking the rules to try and give filth a couple of extra hours.

I am reminded of a great line from The Wedding Singer. The day after he was supposed to marry his girlfriend (who did not show up), she was trying to explain reasons why she did not show up. His response was:

Once again, things that could've been brought to my attention YESTERDAY!

And this is pretty much how I feel about it. Waiting until closing time to make an appeal over 20 years late is stupid.

Kandahar said:

It signifies their intent to review the matter and possibly rule it unconstitutional.

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Which still doesn't create an automatic stay.

Six hours is hardly a long time...especially when the defense attorneys were operating under the perfectly reasonable assumption that they had LONGER than 5pm to file the papers and no one had told them otherwise.

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I don't think it's at all clear that they reasonable assumed that. IIRC, when they called at 4:45, they claimed that the reason the papers would be coming after 5 was because of "computer problems." If the practice was truly to allow filings after 5pm, then they wouldn't have needed to plead that excuse.

Furthermore, custom and practice do not excuse poor lawyering.

Furthermore, you do not execute someone because his lawyers flubbed some minor procedural detail.

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They didn't - they executed him because he was convicted of murder.

Come on, you're a lawyer and this is the best argument you have? They DIDN'T "take him out back and fry him." They executed him by lethal injection, just like all other Texas death row inmates.

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I'm not making a legal argument, I'm making a practical one. The SC was only reviewing the lethal injection. If the state wanted to execute him in some other fashion, they could have done so (assuming that injection isn't the only legal method of execution in TX.)

Irrelevant to the obvious judicial misconduct. If the judge had walked into his cell and shot him point-blank in the head while he was awaiting trial, it wouldn't have changed the outcome. But certainly you would agree she should be punished for that?

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Again, it's a practical argument, not a legal one. I'm just pointing out that this certainly isn't anything close to murder.

Clearly they did. The normal custom was for the court to remain open late on nights when a prisoner was to be executed. The defense counsel was never told otherwise, and was operating under that assumption. The judge's actions were really no different than closing even EARLIER than the scheduled time.

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Again, I don't think this is as certain as you're making it out to me. Everything I've read makes it sound as if it was a far more informal policy (if it even existed) than you're indicating.

Kandahar said:

What are you talking about? Results-oriented? Uhh no. It is process-oriented. If it was results-oriented, it would be called due results, not due process.

If it's results-oriented, then it's not actually due process at all. Why shouldn't police illegally search anyone they please? They'll probably turn up some illegal items on a few people. The results are what matters, right?

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That's not really an apt analogy, because in your example, the person would not have been arrested but for the illegal search. In this case, the person would have been executed either way. My point is that it's essentially a harmless error (as inappropriate as that term may be).

None of this excuses the judge's actions, if it turns out that what she did was actually improper. I just haven't seen anything that proves that yet.

Oozlefinch said:

Hello, they had over 20 years to appeal on that! They had time and more time to make appeals, why wait until the last minute? To me incompetance is with his attorneys, who simply tried to wait until the last minute, in order to drag out some extra life for their murdering piece of filth client.

I have seen that kind of thing over and over again, and it always makes me sick. An appeal on the method of execution is something that should be filed months before the execution time, not hours. It is not like it is a surprise, and should be done in a timely manner.

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Actually, they were not able to file their motion until 9 AM the day of the execution because the Supreme Court had granted cert that day on a case that made such a motion possible. Had they not attempted to make the motion they would be the ones to catch a case for failing to zealously defend their client.

Looking over this. Still not finding a decent excuse. Drafting a stay and filing it does not take that long. Many have this in PDF form. From my understanding the judge was not notified of what was being asked to be filed when she was notified.

Still no legal basis. The ethical side still doesn't have much of a case against her. Don't see this going anywhere.