Judge on trial after refusing to accept death row appeal

[seraosha]

5:00pm deadline (http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/08/17/texas.judge.misconduct/index.html).

The defensive lawyers complaint is that their client was executed unfairly, as they didn't meet the deadline. Judge Sharon Keller is being charged with failing to follow the court's execution-day procedures in the case of death-row inmate Michael Wayne Richard, and denying Richard access to open courts and the right to be heard.



Marty "asked her whether the clerk's office (or the court) could stay open past 5 p.m.," the complaint said. "Judge Keller said, 'No,' and asked, 'Why?' Mr. Marty replied: 'They wanted to file something, but they were not ready.' Judge Keller again said 'no.' "

Judge Sharon Keller sits on the bench at the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.

Her response?



"The suggestion ... that Richard was not accorded 'access to open courts or the right to be heard according to law' is patently without merit,"

The douchbag, convicted of ******ly assaulting and killing a woman in 1986, had two trials, two direct appeals -- one to the US Supreme Court-- two state review proceedings and three federal review proceedings or motions hearings.

I just wish they could have revived him from the first death and then electrocuted him, just to be sure.

[Mastermind]

In my experience with 12 years of corrections (as a guard and supervisor, not as a convict-) The filing of a writ after hours on an execution day was a common practice as an attempt to get a last second stay of execution. The lawyers always had some lame excuse...My car broke down, my child was sick, I had a late court date that day....but, it was really funny how these strange events only happened to them on the day their client was scheduled for the last hour on earth.

This Judge will probably get a black eye over this...but, she will certainly not be removed. She sounds like she was positivly aware of the scumbags history and she was probably aware of these cheap lawyer "late appeal" tactics and was sick of them. The reason their client was put down on that day was not because the judge closed at 5...they were sloppy with their procedures, idiotic about having the whole case locked up in just one shoddy computer, thought they could scam the system (because they had nothing else but a scam)...and they did not count on having a Judge who was filled up to the brim with thier utter nonsense. I bet lawyer/shysters will not try that old trick again with her.

[RxOnco]

She should be in the clear. It's my understanding that she wasn't at the courthouse at the time of the call. She evidently had to run home to meet a repair man or something. Someone at the courhouse called her and simply asked if they could stay open after 5pm. The didn't say why. So, she said "no."
Aside from that defense, there's also some type of rule that allows them to file with another judge who is always there. The defense didn't do that.

[Mastermind]

FTA"Marty "asked her whether the clerk's office (or the court) could stay open past 5 p.m.," the complaint said. "Judge Keller said, 'No,' and asked, 'Why?' Mr. Marty replied: 'They wanted to file something, but they were not ready.' Judge Keller again said 'no.' "

Now, we have got to assume "They" meant the lawyers for the murdering savage. We also have to assume the Judge is smart enough to know what the "something" is...obviously a writ of appeal...If the clerk was ambiguous about the meaning of this life or death "something', then I would say, "Bye-bye...yer outta here!"

But, also, the Judge stated, there were no official judicial rules (standards) for this circumstance at the time....that alone would let her off the hook...in essence, staying open after hours for a lawyer's late appeal, important or not, was entirely at the Judge's discretion.

[futurepilot2004]

Well she also rejected the appeal of a mentally handicapped guy who was convicted of rape and murder....eventhough DNA/semen on the victim didnt match his.

Her quote "We can’t give new trials to everyone who establishes, after conviction, that they might be innocent"
Sounds like a hearthless b*tch really.

Oh and before someone calls me a pinko liberal whatever, George Bush pardoned the guy because it was blatently obvious he was innocent.

[Mastermind]

^^...Hmmm...so obviously innocent the guy was convicted in court?

Not trying to be a smart A...While i was "Prison guarding" we had a kid in prison who was only 17...I got curious...just did not seem right. he was really a good kid ---seemingly...just a gut feeling...so I decided to check into his file.

He was in prison for rape!

Who did he supposedly rape? I wondered...a gal his age at the time (16).

I also noticed he was arrested, tried and convicted in only 8 weeks...practically unheard of in NM...especially for a rape case.

I got curious-er.

Made a few phone calls...funny that the victim had the same last name as the Sheriff of the County who did the arrest...(Sheriffs hardly ever arrest anyone...the deputies do all that grunt work).

So...a bit more investigation...I was way out of my league. I had a few pals in copland who helped.

Come to find out, this kid had been dating the Sheriff's daughter...Daddy hated the kid (He was Hispanic) and tried to stop the relationship...but, as usually happens, the harder he tried the more she "loved" Jose.

So, daddy made a deal with a judge, arrested the kid on trumped up charges, got him tried as an adult...long sentence that way...basically forever. Was also great pals with the "Court appointed Attorney"...and Presto! problem solved....Jose get's put away for 19 years!

I made a few more contacts, wrote a few letters...and it took another six months but the kid's case was allowed a review, and the kid was released...all charges dropped after a new trial in a different jurisdiction. Officially, I had nothing to do with it.

So, I know positively, there is a reason the thing is called, "The Criminal Justice System". Much of what it does is absolutely criminal!

[Dextermination]

^^...Hmmm...so obviously innocent the guy was convicted in court?

Not trying to be a smart A...While i was "Prison guarding" we had a kid in prison who was only 17...I got curious...just did not seem right. he was really a good kid ---seemingly...just a gut feeling...so I decided to check into his file.

He was in prison for rape!

Who did he supposedly rape? I wondered...a gal his age at the time (16).

I also noticed he was arrested, tried and convicted in only 8 weeks...practically unheard of in NM...especially for a rape case.

I got curious-er.

Made a few phone calls...funny that the victim had the same last name as the Sheriff of the County who did the arrest...(Sheriffs hardly ever arrest anyone...the deputies do all that grunt work).

So...a bit more investigation...I was way out of my league. I had a few pals in copland who helped.

Come to find out, this kid had been dating the Sheriff's daughter...Daddy hated the kid (He was Hispanic) and tried to stop the relationship...but, as usually happens, the harder he tried the more she "loved" Jose.

So, daddy made a deal with a judge, arrested the kid on trumped up charges, got him tried as an adult...long sentence that way...basically forever. Was also great pals with the "Court appointed Attorney"...and Presto! problem solved....Jose get's put away for 19 years!

I made a few more contacts, wrote a few letters...and it took another six months but the kid's case was allowed a review, and the kid was released...all charges dropped after a new trial in a different jurisdiction. Officially, I had nothing to do with it.

So, I know positively, there is a reason the thing is called, "The Criminal Justice System". Much of what it does is absolutely criminal!
Good job there.

[California Joe]

MM is like a one man ACLU.




p-)

[Holmes85]

I most certainly agree, excellent work.

What were the ramifications for the sheriff after this was revealed if you don't mind me asking?

[Soldat_Américain]

Wait...I thought there was fast lane in Texas for the death penalty?

[Mastermind]

Sorry...got busy with the health care bill...I never found out about the Sheriff or the judge or the attorney. Those guys in New Mexico have a hellacious good-old-boy system and the State police, or for that matter any LEOs in Santa Fe never followed up. The kid was let go and that was that.

I was just always in trouble getting my stupid nose in where it did not belong. I would see something worng and go for it. I was quite an activits...that's why I only lasted 12 years. Burned out early.