The Disappearing Blood Stain

Townhall.com ^ | March 31, 2010 | Jacob Sullum

[Puddleglum]

this is why I oppose the death penalty - humans enforce it. Sometimes pretty stupid ones, sometimes corrupt ones, occasionally honest ones.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

$14 million is not enough.

[valkyry1]

There are way to many instances of prosecutiorial and police misconduct, such as the withholding of critical blood evidence in this case.

[DBrow]

‘leaving blood on the man’s pants. The blood was type B; Thompson’s blood type is O.”

And what was the victim’s blood type? This is crucial.

[jwparkerjr]

There are some cases where I feel the death penalty is justified and the evidence is so conclusive as to assure the guilty person is being executed. For the others, and there so many of them, you are exactly right.

It’s a tough call, but there are certainly times when there is absolutely no doubt who did the killing and the circumstances are such that it could be nothing but premeditated murder.

[frithguild]

And since prosecutors themselves have absolute immunity for their trial-related misconduct, the threat of lawsuits against their employers is an important safeguard to prevent the pursuit of victory from trumping the pursuit of justice.

The problem is absolute immunity, and not that some individuals whose conduct is suficiently heneious that they have forefitted their life. Governmental legal infallibity through absolute immunity always yields the worst unintended consequences.

[dblshot]

From Wikpedia Joseph Harry Fowler Connick, Sr. (born 1926) is a New Orleans attorney who is best known for serving as the district attorney of the Parish of Orleans, which contains the City of New Orleans, from 1973 to 2003. Connick is an Irish Catholic. His son, Harry Connick, Jr. is a successful singer, pianist, actor, and humanitarian. Like his famous son, the elder Connick is also a singer of some note, long performing a few nights a week at local clubs as a hobby.[citation needed] He has been outspoken on the use of narcotics and pressed for drug testing of high-school students.[citation needed] Since September 2003, he has also served on the board of directors for Psychemedics Corporation, a firm producing drug tests that use hair samples, rather than urine. Given his defense of withholding of evidence in the Thompson case, i don't think he should be on the board of Psychemedics. I reckon he takes his son's rendition of "It Had To Be You" a bit too seriously.

[Seruzawa]

A simple solution would be to mandate that in cases of purposeful prosecutorial misconduct of this sort of egregious nature the offending DA would be given the same peanlty that the victim received. In this case the DAs would be given lethal injections.

[HiTech RedNeck]

I foresee at least a 5-4 upholding of the award and possibly more, with quibbles from Thomas and Scalia dissenting as to the manner of legal approach.

[SeaHawkFan]

It's hard to say which would be more appalling: if prosecutors intentionally hid the blood test, or if they did not know they were required to share it. There is evidence to support both theories.

They did both. Everyone asociated with the criminal justice system knows about Brady v. Maryland.

This kind of stuff is exactly why I am no longer a supporter of the death penalty in most cases unless there is considerable physical evidence.

[ZULU]

If it can be proved these prosecutors deliberately withheld evidence which would have cleared this guy,, hey should be sentenced to the same term of prison, in the very same prison he served.

That’s justice.

Such an action is despicable and a warning needs to be sent to all prosecutors in the Country in cases like this one.

How could you possibly sleep at night knowing an innocent man was serving time in prison because you were more concerned with a conviction than justice???

HOW????

[Mrs. Don-o]

I guess this makes me, too, one of those conservatives who can support the death penalty "in theory, but not in practice."

As long as you have unscrupulous prosecutors, lazy police, corrupt judges -- and I'm not impugning these professions per se--- I'm saying as long as you have human weakness and failure, you'll have cases like this, and innocent men and women who die at the hands of the State.

This case didn't involve the present political Administration. But, for the near future, when the State is corrupt from the top, with politically-vetted people at every level -- the Obamunist state --- it's even worse. I would not put the power of life and death into their hands.

[aimhigh]

a warning needs to be sent to all prosecutors in the Country in cases like this one.

The prosecutors in this case need to be jailed. To many liberal prosecutors who have no concern for truth or justice. Liberals like Kerry got their start as prosecutors.

[Slump Tester]

"Connick is an Irish Catholic.."

Which probably makes him a democRAT.

[dblshot]

Which probably makes him a democRAT.
In New Orleans Parish, you think?

[jagusafr]

“Connick had acted with “deliberate indifference” by failing to train his underlings in their constitutional obligations.”

Not to justify for one moment the heinous actions of these prosecutors, but didn’t they learn in law school about evidentiary standards and discovery requirements in criminal cases? Criminal Procedure and Criminal Law are required first-year courses. Why did they have to have their boss, who presumably hired them because they were already at least minimally competent at CRIMINAL LAW, train them on the basics?

Colonel, USAFR
Prosecutor, Judge, Defense Counsel

[jagusafr]

How could you possibly sleep at night knowing an innocent man was serving time in prison because you were more concerned with a conviction than justice???

_____________

I don’t know about Louisiana, but the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure clearly states that “the job of a prosecutor is not to convict, but to ensure that justice is done”. I quote that during every criminal voir dire I conduct as a city prosecutor. It is to my profession’s shame that too many prosecutors are more concerned with having a notch on the belt than seeing that justice is served.

Colonel, USAFR

[ZULU]

You are a Great American.

[Vendome]

a federal jury that concluded Connick had acted with "deliberate indifference" by failing to train his underlings in their constitutional obligations.

 

Seriously?!!!  He should have trained them on Constitutional obligations?

 

Get real.  Most Americans know this and it would surely be taught in law school, several times and would have shown itself in mock trial.

 

These jerks knew this stuff and trashed another man's life.  They should be in jail.  Why isn't deprivation of liberty, under color of law, punishable by prison.

 

Goose meet Gander?  F- the loot, I would want the bastards chained and imprisoned.