Tuesday, July 31, 2018

Louisiana Justice: (Death penalty); Syndicated columnist Jim Brown says, in a great column, 'Bad justice is good reason to hang up the Louisiana death penalty.'..."For years, the Bayou State has held the title of having the highest incarceration rate in the world. It now has taken on the dubious title of having case after case of death row inmates being convicted based on the withholding of evidence that would prove their innocence."


PUBLISHER'S NOTE: My experience in helping Rodricus Crawford get off of Louisiana's Death Row was an eye-opener. Louisiana's justice system is brutal, racist,  stacked terribly against the usually black Death Row accused, and hungry to kill, kill, kill kill. That's why I was so thrilled to read Jim Brown's syndicated column with the blunt message,  "Bad justice is good reason to hang up the Louisiana death penalty, " I am singling out a few paragraphs that deal with the outrageous John Thompson case -    and invite our readers to read the entire column at:
https://www.bayoubuzz.com/issues/item/1063519-bad-justice-is-good-reason-to-hang-up-the-louisiana-death-penalty (Jim Brown’s syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers throughout the nation and on websites worldwide.. Jim Brown is a Louisiana legislator, Secretary of State and Insurance Commissioner.)

COMMENTARY: "Bad justice is good reason to hang up the Louisiana death penalty," by syndicated columnist Jim Brown, published by The Bayoo Buzz on July 26, 2018.)


GIST: "For years, the Bayou State has held the title of having the highest incarceration rate in the world. It now has taken on the dubious title of having case after case of death row inmates being convicted based on the withholding of evidence that would prove their innocence. New Orleans has become the cesspool for the innocent being convicted of capital crimes and sentenced to death. One of the most egregious is the case of New Orleanian John Thompson, who was convicted back in 1982 of first-degree murder and given the death sentence.  He came within days of being executed after spending 14 years on death row and 18 years total in prison.  Five different prosecutors were involved in the case and all knew that a blood test, and other key evidence that showed Thompson was innocent, had been withheld by the prosecution. On his deathbed and dying of cancer, one of the prosecutors confessed to a colleague that he had hidden the exculpatory blood sample.  The colleague waited five more years before admitting that he too knew of the hidden evidence.  Thompson, after 18 years, received a new trial, and his lawyers were finally able to produce ten difference pieces of evidence that had been kept from Thompson’s defense attorneys, that overwhelming showed he was innocent.  The new jury took less than 35 minutes to find him not guilty. Hiding evidence that can find the accused innocent is nothing new for prosecutors in New Orleans, both in state and federal court as well as with the FBI. The Innocence Project of New Orleans reviewed a number of convictions over the past 25 years in the city and concluded that prosecutors have a “legacy” of suppressing evidence.

The entire column can be found at the link below:
https://www.bayoubuzz.com/issues/item/1063519-bad-justice-is-good-reason-to-hang-up-the-louisiana-death-penalty

PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. 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.