"Michael Land was convicted in the May 1992 killing of 30-year-old Candace Brown. A federal judge had tossed out the death sentence because Land's lawyer didn't tell jurors at sentencing that Land HAS AN IQ OF LESS THAN 70 and was classified as mentally retarded. In general an inmate who is to be executed must have an IQ at a level 70 or higher. The state's high court said Thursday that it has scheduled the execution of Michael Jeffrey Land for Aug. 12."
With all due respect, I have a very serious question: How can we, as a state, execute a man with an IQ of less than 70? Is this a ploy by the DOC to enforce the rest of the country's view that we are a backward state of uneducated, inbred, toothless, morons? Because, congratulations, it's a great one.
When I was given an IQ test at the age of six, I scored a 140. Mr. Land is half as capable of reasoning as I was as a first grader. I DO, in fact, staunchly agree that he should not be freely roaming the streets, and that the victim's family has the right to see him punished by the justice system, the retribution-murder by the state of Alabama of a man who is considered to be mentally retarded is NOT justice, it is not going to fix anything, it is not going to bring the victim back to her family-- it is going to destroy another family.
This execution is inhumane, it is barbaric, and, frankly, it is embarrassing to me as an Alabamian and as an American. This is why people leave the South and become those "East Coast Liberals" we hear so much about on FOX "news". No intelligent person with any sense of empathy could bear being associated with such an atrocity.
As a closing note, I would like for everyone to know that Mr. Land's grandfather is a ninety-year-old veteran of World War II who was notified two days before Independence Day that his grandson was going to be killed. Happy Fourth of July, Airman.
"Today I call for a moratorium on Alabama's death penalty. You know, there are a lot of people on death row that are guilty, but we cannot take the risk as a society of executing anybody who's innocent. So until we can guarantee that everybody's got a good lawyer and every defendent's got access to things like DNA testing, we should stop the executions. If you agree with me, then help me get this message out."
In a statement, Perkins said, "We have a broken system, and we should not execute another person until it is fixed. There are a lot of guilty people on death row but we can’t take the risk of executing anyone who is innocent. This is a moral issue. ... We need to provide all defendants good lawyers and good science to make sure we get it right. We should not execute an innocent person while the real killer walks the streets."
I interviewed Giles Perkins a couple of days ago and came away very impressed that this man is where he ought to be in terms of priorities and his understanding of the behavior we should expect from public officials. This stand confirms that. A moratorium on the death penalty is something we all know is a moral imperative, and yet virtually no Alabama politicians have had the courage to publicly call for it. If this doesn't move you to support Giles Perkins' campaign, what will?
Perkins is in a runoff with James Anderson for the Democratic nomination for Attorney General. Turnout is expected to be light -- in many parts of the state this is the only Democratic race on the ballot July 13th -- so it's critically important to remember to vote yourself and remind your friends to vote. There's an opportunity for progress here; let's not let it slip through our fingers.
Psst President Obama! Your poll numbers are taking a hit because you aren't doing what we the people elected you to do. Yet. Start taking kicking some gop butt and taking names and your poll numbers will go up. Ask Representative Alan Grayson.
First we had the birthers, Then came the deathers. Now we have the oathers. Are we in trouble yet?
Heard this on NPR this afternoon -- my jaw absolutely hit the floor. From the Progressive Electorate:
Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered a rare innocence claim hearing in the Troy Anthony Davis case.
...
ustice Antonin Scalia along with Justice Clarence Thomas issued dissents. Here's part of what Scalia said
This Court has never held that the Constitution forbids the execution of a convicted defendant who has had a full and fair trial but is later able to convince a habeas court that he is "actually" innocent. Quite to the contrary, we have repeatedly left that question unresolved, while expressing considerable doubt that any claim based on alleged "actual innocence" is constitutionally cognizable
In Scalia's world it does not matter when a person is found to be innocent. The constitution is once again thrown out the window and stomped upon by one who is suppose to be a "wise conservative". Scalia argues past procedure weight over the result of an innocent man being put to death.
Let me preface this diary - I am unabashedly opposed to the death penalty. I've never gotten into to the eye for an eye argument because of its such inherently biased application based on race and class.
Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered a rare innocence claim hearing in the Troy Anthony Davis case .
Davis was convicted in 1991 of murdering an off-duty Savannah police officer, Mark Allen MacPhail, in 1989. Since his trial, Davis has claimed, seven of the state of Georgia's key witneeses have recanted the testimony they gave at the trial. Several other individuals have implicated another man - the prosecution's key witness against Davis - as the shooter.
Those who support Progressive causes are in an odd position these days: we’re often in the majority on issues that matter; and we’re seriously talking about how to turn what, just a few years ago, was a wish list...into a “reality list”.
Staying in the majority, however, requires the assistance of centrist voters--and that means, from time to time, finding philosophical compromise with voters we’d like to keep “in the fold”.
In years past, the issue of the death penalty has created a considerable chasm between Progressives and centrists; with the one side concerned about the misapplication of capital punishment, and the other convinced that, for the most heinous of crimes, the only way to achieve a truly just outcome is for the guilty party to face the most severe of punishments.
What if we could bridge that gap?
In today’s discussion we propose to do exactly that: to create a death penalty process that only executes those who are truly guilty and excludes those who might not deserve to be put to death...in fact, those who might not be guilty of any crime at all.
We shouldn't mess around with the death penalty -- be absolutely sure or don't do it. The Alabama Supreme Court felt there was sufficient reason to delay Thomas Arthur's execution and as a resident of Alabama, I'm greatly relieved.
The state should allow DNA testing to make absolutely sure they have the right man. I have been puzzled for months to understand why Gov. Riley and AG Troy King were so darned reluctant to allow DNA testing -- even when someone else was going to pay for it. Well, it turns out the rape kit containing critical evidence has been lost. That doesn't inspire confidence in the state.
Making the situation even more unsettling, another inmate, Bobby Ray Gilbert, is now claiming that he, not Arthur, actually committed the murder. It's a pretty damned tangled web. Do the DNA testing on whatever evidence is left . Be sure. There's no going back after the state of Alabama has executed this man.
This is from the Birmingham News, spot on for once:
Although other biological evidence was collected and should be DNA-tested - assuming the state can find it - it's beyond troubling to think the state was prepared to execute Arthur when what could be crucial evidence is nowhere to be found.
DNA tests could have and should have been conducted, even without Gilbert's confession. It's not that we're convinced Arthur is not guilty. It's that we believe the state must be certain he is guilty before putting him to death.
Gilbert's statement raises questions that must be answered before an execution takes place. So does the issue of missing evidence.
Chief Justice Sue Bell Cobb and Justices Champ Lyons, Tom Woodall, Patti Smith and Glenn Murdock deserve credit for demanding the questions be answered before Arthur's execution takes place.
As Alabama State Bar President Mark White said in a statement praising the judges: "Our system of justice must find a way to avoid the situation where DNA exonerates a person after execution."
The reluctance of the state of Alabama -- as personified by Governor Bob Riley and Attorney General Troy King -- to do everything possible to make absolutely sure we execute the right man is totally inexplicable to me. A number of death penalty convictions in other states have been overturned by DNA tests so it's not like anyone thinks the system is perfect. We have a new tool and we should use it to make a bad system better.
Disclosure: I don't like the death penalty, but if we're bound and determined to violate the 6th Commandment in the name of the State, it's our clear duty to take every measure to assure we aren't killing the wrong person.
Alabama state Sen. Hank Sanders had an interesting op-ed in the paper Thursday examining the recent trend in which Alabama is always the bridesmaid, never the bride when it comes to convincing big automakers to locate in the state.
Now it seems like Alabama just can't win an automobile plant. We lost Nissan to Mississippi. Gov. Riley and his team tried to secure the Kia plant. It went to Georgia, locating just across the east Alabama line. Then they tried to lure Volkswagen. It went to Tennessee, not far from the northeast Alabama line. And in 2007, Mississippi landed a big Toyota plant in Blue Springs, Miss., for which Alabama did not even compete.
Herding old cats recently postulated that the VW decision to locate near Chatanooga instead of in Limestone County might have had something to do with the unwelcoming attitude of Alabama government and business leaders toward labor unions. We're a right to starve work state and the Chamber of Commerce is proud of it, you know. I tend to think their attitude toward unions does have something to do with the VW loss, but other factors were involved as well.
Amnesty USA points out that the death penalty, as practiced in Alabama could very well have an impact on industry recruiting, particularly recruiting of European companies. In June, Philip Alston, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary and Arbitrary Executions issued a strong statement (PDF) which bears on this issue after a two week tour of the U.S., including Alabama
I chose to visit Alabama because it has the highest per capita rate of executions in the US, and Texas because it has the largest number of executions and prisoners on death row. ...
In Texas, there is at least significant recognition that reforms are needed. In Alabama, the situation remains highly problematic. Government officials seem strikingly indifferent to the risk of executing innocent people and have a range of standard responses, most of which are characterized by a refusal to engage with the facts. The reality is that the system is simply not designed to turn up cases of innocence, however compelling they might be. It is entirely possible that Alabama has already executed innocent people, but officials would rather deny than confront flaws in the criminal justice system.
Alabama’s systematic rejection of concerns that basic international standards are being violated sits oddly alongside the Government’s determined and successful bid to attract foreign investment from the European Union in particular. Indeed, Alabama’s largest export market in 2007 was Germany. It would thus be appropriate for Alabama to engage in a dialogue on due process concerns in its death penalty with the international community.
Given the rising number of innocent people being exonerated nationwide, both Alabama and Texas need to ask what might be wrong with their criminal justice systems and how the problems might be fixed.
I know the opinion of the United Nations cuts no ice with Bob Riley or Troy King, staunch defenders of execution that they are, but Riley at least cares about bringing industry to the state. When a company locates a new plant here, they don't hire all new employees to staff it. Sure, they hire a lot of local people, but they also transfer a team of managers and experienced workers from other locations, maybe even Europe or Asia. If their people are reluctant to live in Alabama -- because they think our schools or hospitals aren't good enough, our criminal justice system is bloodthirsty, union employees won't be welcome or our government is corrupt -- that's a black mark against Alabama for any company considering building here. And it costs us jobs and tax revenue.
It's kind of ironic, but Alabama may have lost the VW plant because our state leaders (notice I didn't say the citizenry) aren't progressive enough. So much for conservatism invariably being good for business. When you're competing for the best jobs in a global economy, you have to fit in socially, as well as economically.
Yesterday the Roberts Supreme Court ruled that a lethal injection method similar to that used in Alabama is not "cruel and unusual," opening the door for prisoner executions to begin again after a nationwide 7 month moratorium. Alabama Attorney General Troy King is ready:
"It is time to move forward seeking the execution of the guilty for their murderous acts," Alabama Attorney General Troy King said in a prepared statement.
"As attorney general, I will do so."
Alabama was number 2 in the number of citizens executed last year. Don't expect us to fall much lower than that because we don't allow inmates on death row to pursue DNA tests in an effort to prove their innocence. You wouldn't want Troy and company to miss an execution, would you?
They used to hang people in the public square and people would come from miles around for the entertainment -- picnic lunches, kids and all the trappings. Have we made progress since then?
It's not exactly something to be proud of that Alabama is second in the nation in the number of our fellow citizens we executed last year. Heck, Governor Riley won't even allow DNA testing for inmates facing the death penalty to be extra sure we aren't executing an innocent person by mistake. With three Alabama executions in 2007 (and three more stayed by court order) it's small consolation that we're way behind the leader -- Texas has a lock on that with 26 executions.
The following article was prepared for the Birmingham News by a friend of mine, Lisa Borden. In addition to her legal practice, she finds time to lead her daughter's Brownie Troop, and study the violin. Need I add that she's also a good Democrat? Hats off to Lisa for writing such a wonderful article, and congratulations for making the front page of the Birmingham News!
Given the current Republican-appointed Supreme Court, I suppose we aren't surprised to hear that they declined to review this case, but I for one am saddened to see yet another example of our current two-tiered Justice System, where the rich get the best justice money can buy, and the poor get the Death Penalty.
Legal aid needed for Death Row inmates
Sunday, June 24, 2007
LISA W. BORDEN
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review an important case concerning Alabama's death penalty procedures. Christopher Barbour and seven other current or former Death Row inmates filed a lawsuit with a simple premise: The state should be required to provide legal assistance to poor people, sentenced to death, in challenging their convictions and sentences under Alabama's convoluted and unforgiving postconviction rules.
Alabama is the only state that provides no legal assistance whatsoever to indigent Death Row inmates in bringing such challenges. Whether the court's refusal to become involved in addressing these intolerable procedures means they are allowed to continue to speak volumes about our state.
Although I struggle with the concept at times, I believe there are cases in which death may be an appropriate penalty. But they are the few, not the many. More important, death must never be imposed unless we can say, confidently, that the verdict was both correct and just. Under Alabama's capital punishment system, we can say neither of those things.
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Yesterday the Roberts 
