Cameron Todd Willingham; Innocence Project release details request by his surviving relatives and exoneree Michael Morton to conduct a posthumous pardon investigation into the wrongful execution. Links to key documents including the petition to Governor Rick Perry, forensic records and findings of the Texas Forensic Science Commission's findings; (Must Read; HL);

PUBLISHER'S VIEW: (EDITORIAL);

The Innocence Project has announced that it has discovered new evidence  of  possible prosecutorial misconduct which, if proven true, will indicate that a prosecutor deliberately took steps to secure false testimony which led  inevitably  to the execution of Cameron Todd Willingham, an innocent man. The call for a thorough investigation into this wrongful execution  comes from the Innocence Project,  a highly credible organization that does not make such allegations lightly. The Innocence Project is acting in concert with  surviving relatives who have been consistently sought  answers so that there will be no other Cameron Todd Willingham's - and with  Michael Morton,  who has  personally experienced   prosecutorial corruption in Texas on a scale  similar to that alleged in the Willingham case.  Now that the Innocence Project's  disturbing allegations have been made public, there is no way to put them back into the bottle. Unless they are investigated in an open, public way, they will fester and eat away at public confidence in  Texas's criminal justice system.  Barry Scheck, co-founder of the Innocence Project,  is asking members of the public to write the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles and Governor Rick Perry  and ask them to thoroughly investigate the wrongful execution  of Cameron Todd Willingham. I am adding my voice to this call, and hope that the readers of this Blog will respond as well.

Harold Levy; Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog;

RELEASE: "Cameron Todd Willingham's surviving relatives, joined by exoneree Michael Morton, request posthumous pardon investigation":  Newly discovered evidence points to possible false testimony at Willingham's trial and possible prosecutorial misconduct that may have contributed to his wrongful execution," published by the Innocence Project on September 27, 2013;

GIST:   "Relatives for Cameron Todd Willingham were joined by exoneree Michael Morton at a press conference at the Texas capitol today to urge the state to conduct an investigation into Willingham’s wrongful execution.  Last year, Willingham’s family filed a posthumous pardon petition before the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles asking that the state pardon Willingham, who was executed in 2004 for the arson murder of his three daughters despite compelling evidence of his innocence.  The Innocence Project filed an amended petition today on behalf of the Willingham family presenting newly discovered evidence that points to possible false testimony at his trial and possible prosecutorial misconduct that may have contributed to his wrongful execution.  “Todd’s dying wish was that we help clear his name, and we can’t let this go until the state acknowledges the grave injustice that Todd suffered,” said Eugenia Willingham, Willingham’s stepmother. Patricia Willingham Cox, Willingham’s cousin added, “The more we learn about Todd’s case, the more we see how tragically the system failed him.  The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles has the power to finally conduct a thorough investigation into his case, and we urge it to do so for the sake of all Texans who deserve a clemency system that values justice over mere finality.”

Following the press conference, exoneree Michael Morton walked with Willingham’s surviving relatives to deliver a letter to Gov. Perry asking for a meeting with him to explain why a hearing is needed.  A copy of the letter is available at www.innocenceproject.org/willingham.     “There are only two mistakes one can make on the road to truth:  not going all the way and not starting,” said Barry Scheck, Co-Director of the Innocence Project, which is affiliated with Cardozo School of Law. “The reason an investigation is so critical in this case isn’t to affix blame on Gov. Perry or any one individual.  Everyone has responsibility if not for making errors then for failing to detect them.” " “In recent years, our state has made great strides in heeding the lessons learned from wrongful convictions,” said Sen. Rodney Eillis (Dist. 13), who is also Chair of the Innocence Project’s Board of Directors.  “But the Willingham case remains a powerful reminder of how much more needs to be done to restore public’s trust in the system.” After Willinghams’s execution, the Innocence Project asked the then newly formed Texas Forensic Science Commission to investigate Willingham’s case and the case of Ernest Willis who was convicted based on similarly flawed evidence but later exonerated for the arson murder that put him on death row.  During the course of that multi-year investigation, nine of the nation’s leading arson scientists reviewed the evidence in Willingham case and all agreed that the original testimony of the fire investigators was based on outdated arson science. A summary of these findings is available at http://www.innocenceproject.org/willingham.The Commission was ultimately barred by the Texas Attorney General from making a finding on whether the state was negligent in the wrongful execution of Willingham, however the Commission acknowledged that unreliable arson science facilitated Willingham’s conviction and recommended that the state conduct a review to determine if there are other people in Texas prisons who were wrongly convicted based on bad arson science.     A copy of the petition filed today, a summary of the scientific reports and a timeline of the case is available at www.innocenceproject.org/willingham. "

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?shva=1#inbox/14160290e1fc1b4d

PUBLISHER'S NOTE:

Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.

I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located  near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.

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

Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com