CAMERON TODD WILLINGHAM: WILLIAMSON COUNTY AG JOHN BRADLEY - (OF WILLINGHAM INFAMY: HL) - FILES FOR RE-ELECTION;

"Bradley has been in the news of late, tied to the Michael Morton case of 1987 wherein Morton was wrongly imprisoned for the death of his wife, Christine Morton. Recent DNA testing of blood on a bandana found near the murder scene showed that Michael Morton was indeed not his wife's killer. Bradley was one of the prosecutors in 1987, under the direction of current District Judge Ken Anderson."

KXAN;

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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. Texas Attorney General John Bradley allowed the execution to proceed even though he had received a report shedding doubt on the arson "science" used to convict Willingham. 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

For an important critique of the devastating state of arson investigation in America with particular reference to the Willingham and Willis cases, go to:

http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/01/fire-investigation-great-read-veteran.html

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"WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) - Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley filed for re-election Monday. He has served as district attorney for the last 10 years," the KXAN story published on November 28, 2011 under the heading, "John Bradley files for re-election," begins.

"Gov. Rick Perry appointed Bradley district attorney in December 2001. Bradley previously served as a prosecutor in Harris and Williamson counties. He won a contested election in 2002. In 2004 and 2008 he was re-elected in unopposed elections," the story continues.

"Bradley has been recognized by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization as board certified in criminal law since 1991 and recently achieved board certification in appellate law as well. He is a national and statewide speaker on criminal justice issues and has published several books on criminal law.

In 2009, the Texas District and County Attorney Association recognized him as the Prosecutor of the Year.

"Through the combined effort of law enforcement, juries, courts and our felony prosecutors, Williamson County has one of the lowest crime rates in the state for a county of our size," said Bradley. "I look forward to working hard to keeping Williamson County a safe place for all of us to play, work and learn."

Bradley has been in the news of late, tied to the Michael Morton case of 1987 wherein Morton was wrongly imprisoned for the death of his wife, Christine Morton. Recent DNA testing of blood on a bandana found near the murder scene showed that Michael Morton was indeed not his wife's killer. Bradley was one of the prosecutors in 1987, under the direction of current District Judge Ken Anderson.

Monday, the Texas Coalition of Lawyer Accountability filed grievances with the State Bar of Texas related to the Morton case against Bradley, Anderson and Mike Davis, who was also a prosecutor at the time.

Anderson said in a public statement earlier this month that they "got it wrong," and apologized to Michael Morton."

The story can be found at:

http://www.kxan.com/dpp/news/local/williamson/john-bradley-files-for-re-election

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

Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:

http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html

Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; hlevy15@gmail.com;