[spintreebob]

as a staff member for the Death Penalty Commission here in Illinois. We worked long and hard to ensure that in the future, death penalty cases will be handled with all the precision and skill they require.

Blatant lie. Lawyers (both prosecution and defense) are allowed, and encouraged in law school, to LIE IN COURT. They are not under oath and pride themselves on doing what ever it takes to win. The Rolando Cruz came down to the fact that the prosecution thought their duty was to do whatever it takes to win. The defense has the same mission: win by any means necessary So the bigger problem is not the obviously crooked George Ryan. Rather, it is the self-righteous, indignant abusers of the system, Jim Ryan, Dick Daley, Dershowitz, Cochran.

Your Commission lacked the guts to mention that the problem is the lawyers.

Witnesses are sworn to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. I have been a witness in both civil and criminal cases where I was instructed to not tell the truth. I served on juries (not murder) where the witnesses were not allowed to tell the whole truth. One doctor told it anyway and was reprimanded by both his own attorney, the other side's attorney, and the judge that he would be held in contempt if he said anything the lawyers did not want to hear.

[Bryan]

Usually such limitations on testimony arise from the need to follow the rules of evidence. Hearsay, speculation, and opinions from someone who is not an expert are the three most common reasons for limiting testimony.

If you are aware of Fact A and Fact B, and you logically look at these facts to arrive at Speculation C, you won't be allowed to testify about anything except Fact A and Fact B. But rest assured that if Speculation C is the logical conclusion, then the jury will also arrive at Speculation C.

It's clear that you don't like these limitations. But if they weren't in effect, it would lead to far greater miscarriages of justice than what you have experienced.

Of course any attorney who instructs a witness to give false testimony should be disbarred.