TX - Cameron Willingham executed for '91 murders of 3 daughters

[kemo]

Governor Perry claimed that he was aware that there were serious problems with the forensic evidence presented to the jury but he was so impressed by the testimony of a "jail-yard snitch" that he was still convinced that the jury "got it right". Apparently, the claim was made that the the "jail-yard snitch" received no "benefit" from his testimony. Turns out that the snitch was well rewarded for his testimony (see link below).

A certain number of innocent defendants are convicted. No Criminal Justice System is perfect. If a convict is later exonerated, he can be released. If he has already been executed, its more of a problem. Particularly for the governor who signed the death warrant. The problem with Death Penalty type cases is that they are generally particularly heinous. There is no worse crime that I can think of than killing your kids because you don't want the responsibility of caring for them. There must have been pressure on the DA to get a DP conviction and he may have been "certain" of Willingham's guilt. It must be frustrating in situations like that where the evidence just isn't there. I can see why the DA "crossed the line" and why the Governor backed him up in spite serious problems with the trial, but they are inexcusable. They violated the oaths of their offices and probably put an innocent man to death.

http://www.themarshallproject.org/2014/08/03/did-texas-execute-an-innocent-man-willingham/

 

[Steely Dan]

The reason for the cover up is that it wouldn't help Rick Perry's political aspirations to admit he let an innocent man die when he could have stopped it. JMO

 

[shadowraiths]

CORSICANA, Tex. — More than a decade after Cameron Todd Willingham was executed for the arson murder of his three young daughters, new evidence has emerged that indicates that a key prosecution witness testified in return for a secret promise to have his own criminal sentence reduced.

In a previously undisclosed letter that the witness, Johnny E. Webb, wrote from prison in 1996, he urged the lead prosecutor in Willingham’s case to make good on what Webb described as an earlier promise to downgrade his conviction. Webb also hinted that he might make his complaint public.​

link

 

[liljim]

there is no evidence that has not been discredited in this case, there is no way he ever would have been charged if not for the report saying it was absolutely arson - and every significant point in that arson investigation has been proven false. not possibly false, not theoretically maybe not quite right - 100% false by repeated scientific experiment.

the jailhouse confession has been recanted multiple times and involved corruption, it would never have been allowed into court.

his demeanor and actions at the crime scene have either been innocently explained or proven to have been falsely represented over time.

the psychological testimony came from discredited sources who were unqualified to give such testimony, and the testimony they gave was not based in science. it would absolutely not be allowed in any court today. they testified that because he had a skull tattoo and rock posters with skull, snake, flame imagery that that should be taken as evidence of his psychological condition...

im sure people will still argue that he is probably guilty, or that none of this PROVES his innocence - but the facts are the facts and there is ZERO evidence left that would result in this man ever being charged.

BUT maybe im missing something, its possible. what evidence still holds up and is strong enough proof that it would lead to this man being charged with arson and murder?

you can argue that the jury did the best they could with the evidence they were presented, but that is not the argument anymore...

 

[CheckYourProof]

There is a recent long and detailed article on this case (1), which also cites as a reference the "Trial by Fire", "The New Yorker" article (2) that was the inception for this thread.

Former Texas governor Rick Perry comes off looking very small in this matter. An attempt was made to get a "posthumous pardon" for Willingham while Perry was still governor (1). Perhaps they should have waited, but they can try again now that Texas has a new governor.

(1)
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_...n_failed_chairman_john_bradley_s_job_was.html
Texas Executed an Almost Certainly Innocent Man
The Texas Forensic Science Commission chairman tried to convince Texas that Cameron Todd Willingham was a monster. Did politics trump truth?
By Jeremy Stahl
AUG. 15 2015 9:04 PM
This story is part of a special Slate Plus package on Jeremy Stahl’s “The Trials of Ed Graf.” Be sure to check out another Slate Plus exclusive related to this story, a profile of the family of Cameron Todd Willingham and their campaign to have him exonerated.

"At the end of 2013, Willingham’s family members and Michael Morton, who has become a prominent advocate for criminal justice reform, came together to call on Perry and the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to give Willingham a posthumous pardon. In April 2014, the board voted to reject their plea. The Willingham family is still hoping that the new governor, Greg Abbott, or a future one will eventually grant their request."

(2)
http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/09/07/trial-by-fire
Trial by Fire
Did Texas execute an innocent man?
BY DAVID GRANN
SEPTEMBER 7, 2009 ISSUE

 

[YESorNO]

FORMER TEXAS PROSECUTOR PROBABLY SENT INNOCENT MAN TO HIS DEATH. NOW HE’S ON TRIAL FOR MISCONDUCT.

"... John Jackson...returned, this time as a defendant, facing charges brought by the State Bar of Texas, whose lawyers argue that Jackson violated basic legal ethics in connection with his conduct in prosecuting the county’s most notorious case, the death penalty trial of Cameron Todd Willingham, who was convicted and ultimately executed for what the state insists was the December 1991 arson-murder of his three young children in the home they shared just over a mile away.

Specifically, the state’s lawyers contend that Jackson made a deal with a jailhouse snitch who agreed to testify against Willingham and then hid that deal from Willingham’s defense attorneys — a clear violation of both law and ethics. They say that Jackson took extraordinary measures over the next two decades to conceal his deceitful actions.
“It is a duty of the prosecution — an ethical obligation — to turn over that evidence,” state bar lawyer Kristin Brady told jurors in her opening arguments last Wednesday afternoon. “For years he protected this snitch; for years. It wasn’t for [the snitch’s] protection, it was for his own protection.”..."

https://theintercept.com/2017/05/02...e-execution-case-stands-trial-for-misconduct/

Link: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ie6ZzwdU3...7lxYwohUM/s1600/Cameron+Todd+Willingham+7.jpg
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[Sulamith]

Movie about Cameron Todd Willingham to be released May 17. "Trial By Fire".

 

[GeorgiaRai]

I see this thread is mostly about the death penalty, but I was wondering if anyone else watched the recent ID episode of Evil Lives Here that featured Stacy Kuykendall. I wasn't familiar with the case prior, so she seemed genuine and credible to me. I wonder if those who've followed the case longer are more cynical and/or suspicious of her motives for doing the show.

Setting aside views of the death penalty, do you think CTW (1) was guilty of starting the fire, and/or (2) tried to save his daughters? In all the follow-up investigations, was it ever determined how the fire started (if it wasn't accelerant as initially thought)?