The Nashville City Paper has a good report about the current state of things in the Philip Workman case. (here). A couple things I want to point out to those of you who are only slightly paying attention to all of this.
First, a jury concluded (and most unbiased observers conclude) that a bullet from Philip Workman's gun killed a Memphis police officer.
Second, for those of you less interested in the law but interested in the morality of executing Workman, even if Workman's gun didn't kill the officer, he is guilty of a capital offense by virtue of committing a felony during the course of which someone's life was lost.
Third, the folks in the Tennessee AG's office aren't bloodthirsty ideologues; however, they are shrewd attorneys and won't knuckle under to "dilatory challenges" and legal shenanigans scatter shot at our legal system by people who believe ANY means is legitimate in opposing the end of state use of force.
UPDATE: I stumbled across (via NiT) the TCASK website and wanted to point out that TCASK spokespeople (most notably on a radio interview this afternoon) are misrepresenting the facts. The witness who testified at trial that Workman fired his gun and who has purportedly "recanted" his testimony "time and again" was a drifter whom Workman apologists at one point cornered in a motel (out west, I believe) and videotaped "recanting" his prior testimony. Workman's attorneys had their opportunity to cross-examine the witness at trial. This case has been considered and re-considered and given every measure of due process. Workman has not been rail-roaded. He needs to face his punishment for willfully precipitating the death of a law enforcement officer in Memphis in 1981.
In sum, it's no surprise that the zeal and emotionalism of death penalty opponents increases over the years (as the date for carrying out the punishment approaches) and that facts and assertions become more malleable when a "trial" moves from the court room to the internet or the press conference.
And it should not be a surprise that as decades pass memory blurs, resolve weakens and those committed foremost to the rule of law lose interest in a case like Workman's. Sure, the governor could choose to grant clemency. The Tennessee legislature could repeal the death penalty. But none of that has happened, and I think it is time for this saga to end.
Hello world!
7 years ago
7 comments:
ned represents the culture of life here...
According to a Channel5 -- http://www.newschannel5.com/Global/story.asp?S=5408747
a scientific analysis shows that the bullet that killed the cop, the bullet that the prosecution offered into evidence, could not have been fired by Workman.
It's already been proven Bush signed the death warrant of at least one innocent man in TX.
I know you're a big fan of Dubya, the executionator.
It's already been proven Bush signed the death warrant of at least one innocent man in TX.
Gee, I missed that story. But in the eyes of TCASK (and you, most likely) not a single one of the 150+ murderers executed in TX should have been executed. That ain't the law.
I know you're a big fan of Dubya, the executionator.
No, I just am pretty sure he's not satan.
ned represents the culture of life here...
Yep; demonstrating the value of innocent human life . . . the rule of law.
a scientific analysis shows that the bullet that killed the cop, the bullet that the prosecution offered into evidence, could not have been fired by Workman.
That's disputable; but what isn't disputable is that Workman felt entitled to take someone else's money and got him a .45 (loaded with particularly deadly bullets) and when police officers responded to protect the innocent human lives, Workman shot his gun numerous times, both officers were injured and one was killed.
Ned,
We are in complete agreement on this.
What I find most troubling is that the death penalty advocates are crying wolf so many times on these various cases of obvious legal and moral guilt that should their much-touted and proverbial Innocent Man show up, they will have exhausted any and all means by which to have him exonerated.
Yes; anti-Death Penalty people have never met a capital felon unworthy of exoneration.
And, may I just say that being in agreement with you is like sipping on a tall glass of lemonade on a late Spring day?
Considering:
1) The way TX justice has been carried out including the denial of DNA Testing
2) The number of inmates cleared by DNA testing after Bush left TX
3) It stands to reason that it is highly probable that at least one of the 145 people that Bush killed in TX was innocent.
http://www2.bc.edu/~sydnor/8.s.html
http://www.dynionmwyn.net/enemies/Bush/bush38.html
Maybe so, and since Dubya was apparently judge, jury and executioner in each instance, he's culpable.
Post a Comment