GEORGE DENKOWSKI (12); COMMENTARY; FOURTEEN DEATH ROW INMATES MAY BE SAVED; TERRY LENAMON AND REBA KENNEDY;

"The sanction was a settlement between the Texas Board and Dr. Denkowski (who has often been labeled "Dr. Death" in the media). The Board heard evidence that Dr. Denkowski's testing methods were not scientifically based. Both his peers (psychologists) as well as death-qualified defense lawyers argued that he was simply unscientific.

In the end, Dr. Death made a deal with the Texas Board: he will not conduct intellectual disability evaluations in future criminal cases. He will pay $5,500 as a fine. He did not admit that he did anything wrong. In return, the Board agreed to dismiss all the charges against him."

TERRY LENAMON AND REBA KENNEDY; DEATH PENALTY BLOG; (Terence M. Lenamon is a Florida Bar certified expert in the area of criminal trial law.)

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"Back in January 2010, we first took note of something sinister happening over in Texas -- media spotlights were revealing that over a dozen Texas Death Row inmates had had their IQ scores suspiciously bumped up to a sufficiently high number that they were eligible for the death penalty and execution," the post by Terry Lenamon and Reba Kennedy on The Death Penalty Blog begins, under the heading, "Texas' Dr. Death, George Denkowski, Sanctioned by Texas Board - 14 Death Row Inmates May Be Saved."

"This month, the story continues as the Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychologists has officially sanctioned, or punished, psychologist George Denkowski. Seems George Denkowski, Ph.D. saw fit to examine 16 individuals and using his special techniques, find each of them competent to stand trial and face the death penalty," the post continues.

"Deal That Was Made: Is It a Hand Slap?

The sanction was a settlement between the Texas Board and Dr. Denkowski (who has often been labeled "Dr. Death" in the media). The Board heard evidence that Dr. Denkowski's testing methods were not scientifically based. Both his peers (psychologists) as well as death-qualified defense lawyers argued that he was simply unscientific.

In the end, Dr. Death made a deal with the Texas Board: he will not conduct intellectual disability evaluations in future criminal cases. He will pay $5,500 as a fine. He did not admit that he did anything wrong. In return, the Board agreed to dismiss all the charges against him.

Fourteen of these men evaluated by Dr. Denkowski sit on Death Row today. Two of these men have been executed.

These are the 14 individuals whose fate remains in the hands of the Texas appellate system after Dr. Death's bad acts have been revealed:

•Anthony Pierce
•Virgilio Maldonado
•Calvin Hunter
•Roosevelt Smith Jr.
•John Matamoros
•Derrick Charles
•Kim Ly Lim
•Coy Wesbrook
•Joel Escobedo
•Jamie McCoskey
•Warren Rivers
•Tomas Gallo
•Steven Butler
•Alfred Brown

Hopefully, the settlement reached here will help the post-conviction efforts of the defense attorneys representing these 14 individuals as they argue that they are indeed protected from the death penalty under federal constitutional mandates that protect against execution of the "mentally retarded," see Atkins v. Virginia and its progeny."

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The post can be found at:

http://www.deathpenaltyblog.com/texas-dr-death-george-denkowski-sanctioned-by-texas-board-14-death-row-inmates-may-be-saved/

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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 found 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;