PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "The Midwest Innocence Project provided the following statement Thursday: "Overwhelming evidence proves Lamar Johnson is innocent. The Attorney General’s latest distraction doesn’t change that, and we look forward to presenting that evidence on Monday.""
STORY: "Missouri AG accuses St. Louis prosecutor of withholding evidence on Lamar Johnson case, seeks sanctions," by Reporter Christine Byers, published by KSDK, one December 8, 2022.
SUB-HEADNG: "Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt claims St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner withheld a positive gunshot residue test on a coat."
GIST: "The Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt’s office has filed a motion for sanctions against St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s office for failing to disclose evidence in her quest to free Lamar Johnson, according to a motion filed Thursday.
Gardner’s office withheld a lab report from the Missouri Attorney General’s office showing Lamar Johnson’s coat was positive for gunshot residue, and that evidence “would likely prove Johnson’s guilt,” according to the motion.
The Attorney General’s office is now asking a judge to sanction Gardner’s office and give the state more time to prepare for the new evidence, according to the motion.
Specifically, Schmitt’s office is asking a judge to grant it more time to update its witness list and exhibit list to “present the concealed evidence,”; to limit Gardner’s cross-examination about the jacket; to draw adverse inference from the “intentional nondisclosure of the positive gunshot residue test; and for a hearing Friday at 2 p.m. to discuss the matter or “as soon as he may be reasonably heard.”
Gardner’s office filed a motion to vacate Johnson’s 1994 conviction for first-degree murder and armed criminal action for the killing of Marcus Boyd in a reported drug dispute in St. Louis. He’s been behind bars for nearly 30 years serving a life sentence for a crime he says he didn’t commit.
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt alleged in a motion filed today that his office only learned about the existence of the gunshot residue test after it called the crime lab that tested the jacket for DNA, and a representative asked if it wanted the gunshot residue reports as well.
Schmitt’s spokesman said he could not comment on the pending litigation and that the motion speaks for itself.
Gardner's office provided the following statement Thursday:
"It is unconscionable that the Attorney General would twist the facts to suit his personal agenda. This is not the first time this office has used the justice system to play politics. The Office of the Circuit Attorney at no point intentionally concealed evidence."
The Midwest Innocence Project provided the following statement Thursday:
"Overwhelming evidence proves Lamar Johnson is innocent. The Attorney General’s latest distraction doesn’t change that, and we look forward to presenting that evidence on Monday.""
The entire story can be read at:
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/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;
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/post/edit/120008354894645705/4704913685758792985
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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