PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker announced in May that new evidence indicated that Strickland, who was 18 when he was arrested, did not commit the murders. Strickland, who is now 62, is “factually innocent” in the April 25, 1978, shooting at 6934 S. Benton Avenue in Kansas City, Baker’s office concluded. The gunfire took the lives of John Walker, 20, Sherrie Black, 22, and Larry Ingram, 21. "
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STORY: "Judge to allow Kansas City crime lab to test fingerprints, by Reporter Robert A. Cronkleton, published by The Kansa City Star, on October 8, 2021.
https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/crime/article254859427.html
GIST: "A judge in Jackson County on Friday set a November court date for an evidentiary hearing that will determine whether Kevin Strickland will be set free.
Senior Judge James Welsh also ruled that the Kansas City police crime lab will be allowed to test fingerprints on the shotgun used in the crime.
The ruling came during a hearing Friday in Jackson County Circuit Court concerning procedural issues in Strickland’s case, who is seeking to be exonerated in a triple murder committed more than 40 years ago.
Welsh gave Jackson County prosecutors, the Missouri Attorney General and Strickland’s attorneys 30 days to exchange information for the hearing, scheduled for Nov. 8.
Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker announced in May that new evidence indicated that Strickland, who was 18 when he was arrested, did not commit the murders.
Strickland, who is now 62, is “factually innocent” in the April 25, 1978, shooting at 6934 S. Benton Avenue in Kansas City, Baker’s office concluded. The gunfire took the lives of John Walker, 20, Sherrie Black, 22, and Larry Ingram, 21.
Arguments in the case had been expected to begin this week after several delays.
But last week, the Missouri Supreme Court disqualified all Jackson County judges and instead appointed Welsh, a retired judge who served on the Western District of the Missouri Court of Appeals, to preside over the case.
The Missouri Attorney General’s Office, which contends Strickland is guilty, claimed there was an appearance of bias in the 16th Circuit Court because its presiding judge, Dale Youngs, has said he “concurs on behalf” of the court that Strickland should be exonerated.
The Missouri Supreme Court found it necessary to prohibit Jackson County judges from presiding over the case to “avoid even the appearance of partiality or impropriety.""
The entire story can be read at:
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. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog;
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FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."
Lawyer Radha Natarajan:
Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
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FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they’ve exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true!
Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
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FINAL, FINAL, FINAL WORD: “It is incredibly easy to convict an innocent person, but it's exceedingly difficult to undo such a devastating injustice.
Jennifer Givens: DirectorL UVA Innocence Project.
