GIST: FROM DEATH PENALTY INFORMATION CENTER 2022 REPORT: "Texas’execution of Kosoul Chanthakoummane on August17 also took place over the objections of the victim’s family. Joe Walker, whose daughter, Sarah, was murdered, said of Chanthakoummane, “I don’t have any hate towards him at all. I don’t want him put to death.” Chanthakoummane’s conviction relied on multiple forms of discredited forensic evidence, including notoriously unreliable bite mark evidence and hypnotically enhanced eyewitness testimony. Chanthakoummane, the son of Laotian refugees who escaped to the United States during the Vietnam war, had long maintained his innocence. Prosecutors said his DNA had been found under Walker’s fingernails and in various locations throughout the house, but defense lawyers argued that the DNA testimony purporting to identify him as the assailant was statistically flawed."
The entire report can be read at:
https://reports.deathpenaltyinfo.org/year-end/Year-End-Report-2022.pdf
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BACKGROUND: Petition: Action Network: "Stop the execution of Kosoul Chanthakoummane."
Kosoul Chanthakoummane has asserted that he is actually innocent since he was arrested for the murder of Sarah Walker in 2006.
First, know that Joseph Walker, the father of Sarah Walker, opposed the death penalty in this case and had reason to question whether prosecutors and police had the right suspect. Mr. Walker was not permitted to testify in the victim impact portion of the sentencing phase of Mr. Chanthakoummane’s trial. As such, we are requesting that the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles give deserved weight to Mr. Walker’s position. Mr. Walker has since died.
There are a number of reasons Texans and everyone else should be concerned about this case. The bottom line: There is too much doubt about the veracity of evidence in this case. Each of the following points are elaborated upon, with documentation, here.
The Accused Has Always Maintained His Innocence
Eye Witnesses Could Only Testify Following Hypnosis
Bite Mark Evidence is Junk Science
DNA Evidence: Where Did It Come From?
There is Another Viable Suspect In This Case
Does Racial Discrimination Play A Role In This Case?
Read about this case in the Texas Observer, the Austin Chronicle, and this article distributed by CNHIto multiple smaller Texas newspapers.
There simply is too much doubt in this case to allow this execution to proceed. One need not be a lawyer, academic, or forensic scientist to see that there are real questions that demand answers if the conviction of Kosoul Chanthakoummane is to stand.
Texas, like much of our nation, has a history of wrongful convictions. With a punishment so severe as the death penalty, there can be no room for error. We are not convinced that the state of Texas got it right in this case. We urge the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to recommend clemency or a reprieve in order to allow a more thorough review of the evidence in this case.
Regarding the image above: Kosoul Chanthakoummane has spent his last 15 years on Texas’ death row channeling his energy into his original artwork. He finds much of his inspiration in his family’s own story of coming to the United States as Laotian refugees escaping the Vietnam war and current social and political events that are happening around us.
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PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resurce. 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/
SEE BREAKDOWN OF SOME OF THE ON-GOING INTERNATIONAL CASES (OUTSIDE OF THE CONTINENTAL USA) THAT I AM FOLLOWING ON THIS BLOG, AT THE LINK BELOW: HL:
https://www.blogger.com/blog/
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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