"Advances in DNA analysis in recent years have exonerated 41 Texans of serious crimes, including rape and murder. Putting the wrong person behind bars — or sending him to the death chamber — is fundamentally an injustice to the wrongly accused. But it's also an injustice to victims and a danger to society that allows dangerous criminals to remain on the streets.
In this day and age, there's no reason why DNA evidence, when it's available, shouldn't routinely be tested as part of the appeals process if it wasn't introduced at trial. Doing so would eliminate questions of reasonable doubt and, in the cases of the truly guilty, limit their seemingly limitless avenues of appeal."
SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS; Wikipedia informs us that, "The San Antonio Express-News is the daily newspaper of San Antonio, Texas. It is ranked as the third-largest daily newspaper in the state of Texas in terms of circulation, and is one of the leading news sources of South Texas, with offices in Austin, Brownsville, Laredo, and Mexico City. The Express-News is owned by the Hearst Corporation."
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BACKGROUND OF APPEAL: Skinner v. Switzer, No. 09-9000, an appeal from Hank Skinner, an inmate in Texas who is seeking access to DNA evidence that he says could prove his innocence. In March, the court granted a stay of execution less than an hour before Mr. Skinner was to be put to death in the murder of his girlfriend and her two sons. Mr. Skinner seeks to test blood, fingernail scrapings and hair found at the scene of the killings. He maintains that he was sleeping on a sofa in a stupor induced by vodka and codeine when the killings took place on Dec. 31, 1993. Prosecutors say he is making his request too late. They add that testing would be pointless because "no item of evidence exists that would conclusively prove that Skinner did not commit the murder." Reporter Adam Liptak: New York Times;
BACKGROUND OF CASE: "Hank Skinner faces execution for a 1993 murder he's always maintained he didn't commit. He wants the state to test whether his DNA matches evidence found at the crime scene, but prosecutors say the time to contest his conviction has come and gone......We told the story of the murders and his conviction and sentencing in the first part of this story." Reporter Brandi Grissom, author of the Tribune series on Hank Skinner, writes: "I interviewed Henry "Hank" Watkins Skinner, 47, at the Polunsky Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice — death row — on January 20, 2010. Skinner was convicted in 1995 of murdering his girlfriends and her two sons; Skinner has always maintained that he's innocent and for 15 years has asked the state to release DNA evidence that he says will prove he was not the killer." Texas Tribune;
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"In Texas, a person convicted of a crime must be found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. By any sensible standard, the elimination of reasonable doubt should include the examination of evidence that might exonerate the accused. That is especially so in capital cases, where the state's ultimate punishment — execution — is irreversible," the San Antonio Express-News editorial published earlier today begins, under the heading, "Confirm guilt beyond doubt with DNA testing."
"The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments last week that test this premise. In March, the high court halted the execution of Henry “Hank” Skinner in Huntsville, one hour before it was to take place," the editorial continues.
"Skinner was convicted and sentenced to die for the 1993 murders of his girlfriend and her two adult sons. An investigation by the Medill Innocence Project raised troubling questions about the circumstantial evidence used to convict Skinner. Among other problems, the state's star witness in the case recanted her story.
Skinner's attorneys argue that critical DNA evidence from the crime scene that has never been tested could exonerate their client. It might just as easily confirm his guilt. Either way, there shouldn't be any doubt.
Advances in DNA analysis in recent years have exonerated 41 Texans of serious crimes, including rape and murder. Putting the wrong person behind bars — or sending him to the death chamber — is fundamentally an injustice to the wrongly accused. But it's also an injustice to victims and a danger to society that allows dangerous criminals to remain on the streets.
In this day and age, there's no reason why DNA evidence, when it's available, shouldn't routinely be tested as part of the appeals process if it wasn't introduced at trial. Doing so would eliminate questions of reasonable doubt and, in the cases of the truly guilty, limit their seemingly limitless avenues of appeal."
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The editorial can be found at:
http://www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/confirm_guilt_beyond_doubt_by_dna_testing_105558208.html
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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;
