Rodricus Crawford: Louisiana; Civil lawsuit launched by former death row inmate aims at examining what went wrong in the case - and instituting checks and balances to ensure such an injustice never happens again..."Those checks and balances were severely lacking when a Caddo District Court jury handed down the capital punishment sentence the following year against the Shreveport man in the 2012 death of his 1-year-old son Roderius "Bobo" Lott, according to Crawford's lawsuit. "Mr. Crawford was convicted and sentenced to death based upon false evidence as a result of the failure of Defendants to conduct an unbiased autopsy based on professional standards of practice, and to properly train and supervise prosecutors in Caddo Parish," said the lawsuit filed Nov. 16 in U.S. District Court for Louisiana's Western District. "Because of the lack of training and supervision and adherence to professional standards, the prosecution was illegally based upon both race and religion, and a complete indifference to the evidence. In addition, Mr. Crawford raises state law negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress claims; but for the reckless and willful conduct of defendants, Mr. Crawford would not have been prosecuted let alone convicted of capital murder." Legacy?Shreveport man freed from death row files suit in hopes 'injustice never happens again'; Karen Kidd; December 5; 2017.
STORY: 'Shreveport man freed from death row files suit in hopes 'injustice never happens again', by reporter Karen Kidd, published by The Louisiana Record on December 5, 3017.
GIST: The lawsuit filed by former death row inmate Rodricus
Crawford is about more than justice for Crawford; it's about getting
Caddo Parish officials to change their death-penalty-dealing ways, one
of the now-freed man's attorneys said during a recent interview. "Rodricus seeks justice not only for himself and for all that he
lost, but also for people who might - God forbid - face similar
circumstances," Crawford's attorney David J. Utter, counsel with The
Claiborne Firm in Savannah, Georgia, said during a Louisiana Record
email interview. "This lawsuit provides parish and city officials do
the right thing by examining what went wrong in Rodricus’ case, and
instituting checks and balances to ensure such an injustice never
happens again. Rodricus Crawford's attorney David J. Utter of The Claiborne
Firm in Savannah, Georgia | Photo courtesy of David J. Utter. Those checks and balances were severely lacking when a Caddo
District Court jury handed down the capital punishment sentence the
following year against the Shreveport man in the 2012 death of his
1-year-old son Roderius "Bobo" Lott, according to Crawford's lawsuit. "Mr. Crawford was convicted and sentenced to death based upon false
evidence as a result of the failure of Defendants to conduct an
unbiased autopsy based on professional standards of practice, and to
properly train and supervise prosecutors in Caddo Parish," said the
lawsuit filed Nov. 16 in U.S. District Court for Louisiana's Western
District. "Because of the lack of training and supervision and adherence to
professional standards, the prosecution was illegally based upon both
race and religion, and a complete indifference to the evidence. In
addition, Mr. Crawford raises state law negligence and intentional
infliction of emotional distress claims; but for the reckless and
willful conduct of defendants, Mr. Crawford would not have been
prosecuted let alone convicted of capital murder." In his lawsuit filed on behalf of himself and his minor daughter,
Crawford claims he did not receive his constitutionally guaranteed right
to a fair trial. Named defendants in the case include Caddo Parish
Coroner's Office, Caddo Parish District Attorney's Office, Caddo Parish
District Attorney James Stewart, former Caddo Parish District Attorney
Dale Cox, Shreveport Fire Department and Coroner James Traylor. Crawford's lawsuit asks for a jury trial. The Caddo Parish District Attorney's office did not respond to a Louisiana Record request for comment. "Defendants knowingly participated in the investigation, arrest and
capital prosecution driven by Caddo Parish, Louisiana's well-known
history of racism and the arbitrary application of the death penalty,"
Crawford's lawsuit said. "But for Defendants’ actions, no prosecution
and conviction of Mr. Crawford would have occurred." Crawford was taken into custody after bruises and other injuries
were discovered on the child's body. Crawford reportedly told police his
son had fallen in the bathroom and Crawford consistently maintained
that he had never harmed his son. His attorneys also consistently maintained that the jury relied on
bad forensic science, and pointed to strong medical evidence that the
child was suffering from pneumonia and died of sepsis. "The conduct of the officials in this case, particularly the
coroner Dr. Traylor and the prosecutor, were particularly egregious,
outside the norm of a mistake or error," Utter said. "There was
intentional misconduct." By the time Crawford's conviction was overturned by the Louisiana Supreme Court
in November 2016, Caddo Parish juries were widely noted for having
sentenced five people to death in six years, 38 percent of the state's
total death sentences. The state's highest court ordered a new trial for Crawford after
finding serious issues with the case, including unconstitutional
exclusion of black jurors. Louisiana prosecutors dropped charges against Crawford this past April and he was freed soon after that. "As the result of Defendants' unconstitutional, negligent and
intentional acts, Mr. Crawford spent 4 years, 9 months, and 6 days
illegally in custody," Crawford's lawsuit said.
Utter credited Baton Rouge lawyer Cecilia Trenticosta Kappel, his
co-counsel in Crawford's lawsuit who is active with the Capital Appeals
Project and the Promise of Justice Initiative, for much of the work done
to exonerate Crawford. "Cecelia is the real hero amongst the lawyers on the case," Utter said. Crawford's lawsuit is necessary to get defendants and others to do the right thing, Utter said.
"Unfortunately, many innocent people who spent time in jail or
prison have to file a lawsuit before officials will do what is right,"
Utter said, referring to the overturned murder conviction of Sabein Burgess in Maryland. "Rodricus only filed because the officials responsible for this
miscarriage of justice failed to apologize and offer to discuss a
settlement that provided justice to him, his family and ensure something
like this never happens again in Shreveport," Utter said."
Two Blogs Now: The Charles Smith Blog; The Selfless Warriors Blog: I created the Charles Smith Blog in 2007 after I retired from The Toronto Star to permit me to keep digging into the story of the flawed pathologist and the harm he had done to so many innocent parents and caregivers, and to Ontario’s criminal justice system. Since then it has taken new directions, including examinations of other flawed pathologists, flawed pathology, and flawed science and technology which has marred the quality of justice in courtrooms around the world. The heart of the Blog is my approach to following cases which raise issues in all of these areas - especially those involving the death penalty. I have dedicated 'The Selfless Warrior Blog’ (soon to appear) to those exceptional individuals who have been ripped out of their ordinary lives by their inability to stand by in the face of a glaring miscarriage of justice. They are my ’Selfless Warriors.’ Enjoy!
