"Lucy Nashed, a spokeswoman for Gov. Rick Perry, said the governor's staff is reviewing the legal filing to determine "whether state involvement is in order."
"New York and Austin anti-death penalty lawyers had years to file this action, so their timing now is certainly curious," Nashed said. "Nothing the Austin court does can change the fact that Todd Willingham was convicted and sentenced to death by a jury of his peers for murdering his three young daughters.""
REPORTER DAVE MONTGOMERY: STAR-TELEGRAM;
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BACKGROUND: (Wikipedia); Cameron Todd Willingham (January 9, 1968 – February 17, 2004), born in Carter County, Oklahoma, was sentenced to death by the state of Texas for murdering his three daughters—two year old Amber Louise Kuykendall, and one year old twins Karmon Diane Willingham and Kameron Marie Willingham— by setting his house on fire. The fire occurred on December 23, 1991 in Corsicana, Texas. Lighter fluid was kept on the front porch of Willingham’s house as evidenced by a melted container found there. Some of this fluid may have entered the front doorway of the house carried along by fire hose water. It was alleged this fluid was deliberately poured to start the fire and that Willingham chose this entrance way so as to impede rescue attempts. The prosecution also used other arson theories that have since been brought into question. In addition to the arson evidence, a jailhouse informant claimed Willingham confessed that he set the fire to hide his wife's physical abuse of the girls, although the girls showed no other injuries besides those caused by the fire. Neighbors also testified that Willingham did not try hard enough to save his children. They allege he "crouched down" in his front yard and watched the house burn for a period of time without attempting to enter the home or go to neighbors for help or request they call firefighters. He claimed that he tried to go back into the house but it was "too hot". As firefighters arrived, however, he rushed towards the garage and pushed his car away from the burning building, requesting firefighters do the same rather than put out the fire. After the fire, Willingham showed no emotion at the death of his children and spent the next day sorting through the debris, laughing and playing music. He expressed anger after finding his dartboard burned in the fire. Firefighters and other witnesses were suspicious of how he reacted during and after the fire. Willingham was charged with murder on January 8, 1992. During his trial in August 1992, he was offered a life term in exchange for a guilty plea, which he turned down insisting he was innocent. After his conviction, he and his wife divorced. She later stated that she believed that Willingham was guilty. Prosecutors alleged this was part of a pattern of behavior intended to rid himself of his children. Willingham had a history of committing crimes, including burglary, grand larceny and car theft. There was also an incident when he beat his pregnant wife over the stomach with a telephone to induce a miscarriage. When asked if he had a final statement, Willingham said: "Yeah. The only statement I want to make is that I am an innocent man - convicted of a crime I did not commit. I have been persecuted for 12 years for something I did not do. From God's dust I came and to dust I will return - so the earth shall become my throne. I gotta go, road dog. I love you Gabby." However, his final words were directed at his ex-wife, Stacy Willingham. He turned to her and said "I hope you rot in hell, bitch" several times while attempting to extend his middle finger in an obscene gesture. His ex-wife did not show any reaction to this. He was executed by lethal injection on February 17, 2004. Subsequent to that date, persistent questions have been raised as to the accuracy of the forensic evidence used in the conviction, specifically, whether it can be proven that an accelerant (such as the lighter fluid mentioned above) was used to start the fatal fire. Fire investigator Gerald L. Hurst reviewed the case documents including the trial transcriptions and an hour-long videotape of the aftermath of the fire scene. Hurst said, "There's nothing to suggest to any reasonable arson investigator that this was an arson fire. It was just a fire. Legendary "Innocence" lawyer Barry Scheck asked participants at a conference of the National Association of Criminal Defence Lawyers held in Toronto in August, 2010, how Willingham, who had lost his family to the fire, must have felt to hear the horrific allegations made against him on the basis of the bogus evidence, "and nobody pays any attention to it as he gets executed." "It's the Dreyfus Affair, and you all know what that is," Scheck continued. "It's the Dreyfus AffaIr of the United States. Luke Power's music video "Texas Death Row Blues," can be found at:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2010/09/cameron-todd-willingham-texas-death-row_02.html
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"AUSTIN -- Supporters of Cameron Todd Willingham hailed an Austin district judge's decision Monday to open a two-day court of inquiry next month to determine whether Willingham was wrongfully convicted and executed in the deaths of his three daughters, who perished in a Corsicana house fire in 1991," the Star-Telegram story by reporter Dave Montgomery published earlier today under the heading, "Judge to open court of inquiry in Willingham arson case," begins.
"Former Gov. Mark White, a member of the legal team that petitioned for the rare legal proceeding, said he believes there is "overwhelming scientific evidence" to support fire experts' findings that the arson investigation that led to Willingham's conviction was outdated and unreliable," the story continues.
""We're prepared to put on witnesses that will be persuasive that the forensic evidence was tantamount to witchcraft," said White, who was a Democratic governor in 1983-1987 and earlier served as state attorney general.
Judge Charlie Baird, who also conducted a court of inquiry that led to the posthumous exoneration of wrongfully convicted inmate Tim Cole of Fort Worth, told the Star-Telegram that he decided to proceed with the court of inquiry in Willingham's case after reviewing a petition filed Friday by lawyers representing Willingham's relatives.
"I have decided that the petition warrants a hearing," Baird said by telephone. The inquiry will be held in his courtroom Oct. 6-7, but Baird said it could be extended if necessary.
Willingham, an unemployed mechanic from Corsicana, was convicted of deliberately setting the fire that killed his daughters, 2-year-old Amber and 1-year-old twins Karmon and Kameron. He went to his death in 2004 insisting that he was innocent.
"Obviously the most troubling aspect of this -- and it just dwarfs everything else -- is whether or not to believe that an innocent person has been executed by the state of Texas," Baird said.
Lucy Nashed, a spokeswoman for Gov. Rick Perry, said the governor's staff is reviewing the legal filing to determine "whether state involvement is in order."
"New York and Austin anti-death penalty lawyers had years to file this action, so their timing now is certainly curious," Nashed said. "Nothing the Austin court does can change the fact that Todd Willingham was convicted and sentenced to death by a jury of his peers for murdering his three young daughters."
The case became the center of national attention after several fire experts concluded that the arson investigation against Willingham was flawed and based on outmoded techniques. The Texas Forensic Science Commission, which has been conducting its own inquiry since 2006, voted this month to proceed with the case and opened the door to an expanded review that could include other potentially flawed arson investigations.
State Fire Marshal Paul Maldonado, in a letter to the commission last month, said the agency stands by its findings in the Willingham case. Maldonado said the investigators' conclusions remain valid after the emergence of updated techniques for arson investigations.
Baird's decision brought a sharp response from Forensic Science Commission Chairman John Bradley, district attorney of Williamson County. Bradley, whom Perry appointed as chairman in a membership shakeup last year, had sought to finish the commission's inquiry at the panel's last meeting in Dallas but was overruled by other members who pushed to continue the case.
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The story can be found at:
http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/09/27/2499165/judge-to-open-court-of-inquiry.html#ixzz10poVnvJF
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PUBLISHER'S NOTE: The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be accessed at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith
For a breakdown of some of the cases, issues and controversies this Blog is currently following, please turn to:
http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=120008354894645705&postID=8369513443994476774
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; hlevy15@gmail.com;
