"Perry's attorneys, of the firm of Vinson & Elkins, hired their own medical examiner to review Shrode's findings. They say Shrode's testimony was imprecise in a way that helped prosecutors in Perry's murder trial.
Perry said he was in jail when the woman he was charged with killing died. But, his attorneys claim, Shrode's testimony allowed prosecutors to argue that the woman died before Perry was incarcerated.
REPORTER MARTY SCHLADEN: THE EL PASO TIMES;"
PHOTO: DR. PAUL SHRODE;
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BACKGROUND: Several cases have came under scrutiny following developments relating to Richard Nields which center around Dr. Paul Shrode. Richard Nields was on death row having been convicted of killing his girlfriend Patricia Newsome in Springfield Township (just outside Cincinnati). The Supreme Court of Ohio had scheduled his murder for June 10. The Ohio Parole Board hearing was held May 10. The Parole Board issued its report and recommendation on May 18, 2010. By a 4-3 vote, it recommended that Nield's sentence be commuted to life without parole, partly because it found the opinion of medical examiner Paul Shrode was unsupported by the forensic evidence. Ohio Governor Ted Strickland commuted the death sentence to life without parole. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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"EL PASO -- A Houston-area man who is to be executed next week says he is innocent, and in court papers filed Thursday he alleges that faulty testimony by Dr. Paul Shrode helped convict him," the El Paso Times story by reporter Marty Schladen, published earlier today under the heading, "Man set to die faults ex-medical examiner," begins.
"The El Paso County Commissioners Court fired Shrode last month as chief medical examiner amid questions about his credibility and competence," the story continues.
"El Paso officials say they were reviewing cases in which Shrode was involved to see whether they were handled properly. Unclear is the nature of those reviews or when they will be completed.
Inmate Michael James Perry, now 28, claims that what Shrode did not say could put him in the Texas death chamber Thursday.
Perry's attorneys, of the firm of Vinson & Elkins, hired their own medical examiner to review Shrode's findings. They say Shrode's testimony was imprecise in a way that helped prosecutors in Perry's murder trial.
Perry said he was in jail when the woman he was charged with killing died. But, his attorneys claim, Shrode's testimony allowed prosecutors to argue that the woman died before Perry was incarcerated.
"As shown by Dr. (Glenn) Larkin, Dr. Shrode's incompetence directly prejudiced Mr. Perry's case in two crucial ways," states a motion filed Thursday with the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.
Shrode could not be reached Thursday. Montgomery County prosecutors have said Perry received a fair trial and was convicted on the evidence.
A second defendant was convicted and is serving a life sentence for two other murders related to Perry's case.
Larkin, formerly a medical examiner in Pittsburgh, said the body of Perry's alleged victim, Sandra Stotler, was not decomposed enough to have died on Oct. 24, 2001. He said she could not have died until two days later, when Perry was already in jail.
Moreover, the other two victims could not have been killed until days after the first victim died, Perry's motion stated. Shrode performed all three autopsies.
Perry was 20 when implicated in Stotler's murder. After being injured in a police chase, he confessed but later recanted. His lawyers say that after his confession prosecutors ignored evidence indicating that Perry might be innocent.
The lawyers also contend that Perry's trial attorney was incompetent. They referred to several news stories, including one in the New York Times, criticizing the attorney, Stephen Taylor.
Perry has exhausted his appeals but is asking the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to delay his execution. The Court of Criminal Appeals could also step in.
"We're down to days," said David P. Blanke, one of Perry's lawyers.
In his court filings, Perry asked for a delay because of new developments.
One was Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland's decision last month to spare a death-row inmate's life, in part because of flawed testimony Shrode gave at his murder trial. Another was Shrode's firing in El Paso County.
Lawyers for Perry, in seeking help from the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, stated that Shrode's dismissal was "both for his ability to perform his job and for lying about his qualifications."
The El Paso County Commissioners Court kept Shrode on the job more than two years after learning in 2007 that he had falsely claimed credentials on his résumé. Commissioner Veronica Escobar has said that what to do about Shrode was complicated by a shortage of medical examiners.
Dolph Quijano is one of several El Paso defense attorneys who have challenged Shrode's findings in court. He said Thursday that the claims in the Perry case mean El Paso County should hire a medical examiner to review findings in all criminal cases involving Shrode -- regardless of cost.
District Attorney Jaime Esparza has said his staff was reviewing cases involving Shrode, and his spokeswoman on Thurs day said the process was continuing.
Public defender Clara Hernandez, an appointed county employee, has not publicly identified a case in which attorneys in her office challenged Shrode in court. She is refusing to turn over a list of cases involving Shrode to county Judge Anthony Cobos, one of her bosses. She said her duty is to clients.
Hernandez and her spokes man did not return calls Thursday. Hernandez has said she would not answer questions unless they were submitted in writing.
Cobos said he did not think the county needed to look at every case involving Shrode, but he said Hernandez should assist the Commissioners Court in conducting an investigation.
"This matter is growing in severity and it's not going away," Cobos said. "We cannot sweep it under the carpet.""
