Houston judge declares death penalty unconstitutional

On March 4, 177th District Judge Kevin Fine(pictured) of Houston declared the death penalty unconstitutional. Fine granted a motion filed by defense attorneys in a capital murder case seeking to have the court find that Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Article 37.071 "violates the protections afforded to the Accused by the 8th and 14th Amendments . . . and that the option to sentence the Accused to die for a crime that he did not commit should be precluded as a sentencing option." “What he’s saying, and what the motion is saying, is that you can’t administer the Texas death penalty fairly in Texas,” says John P. Keirnan, a lawyer for the defendant. “Kevin Fine has taken a courageous stance, finally. This is the beginning of the end of the death penalty in Texas.” Keirnan and Robert Loper represent John Edward Green Jr. According to the indictment, Green is charged with capital murder for shooting Tina Vo to death in Houston on June 8, 2008, while attempting to rob her. Green has pleaded not guilty to the charge and goes to trial March 31. Fine, who has been on the bench since January 2009, did not return a telephone call seeking comment. Harris County District Attorney Patricia Lykos writes in a statement that she and her office respectfully but vigorously disagree with Fine’s ruling “as it has no basis in law or in fact.” She writes, “Words are inadequate to describe the Office’s disappointment and dismay with this ruling; sadly it will delay justice for the victims and their families. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals and other appellate courts have consistently rejected the same issues raised in the Green case.” According to a March 5 press release from the DA's office, lawyers from the office will ask an appellate court to overturn the ruling.  Here's Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott's statement: "In an act of unabashed judicial activism, a state district judge ignored longstanding U.S. Supreme Court precedent and improperly granted John Edward Green's request that the court declare the death penalty unconstitutional. The Attorney General's Office has already offered to provide help and legal resources to the Harris County District Attorney's Office--which is handling the Green prosecution--and will take appropriate measures to defend Texas' capital punishment law. We regret that the court's legally baseless order unnecessarily delays justice and closure for the victim's family--including her two children, who witnessed their mother's brutal murder."

-- Brenda Sapino Jeffreys

Editor's note: The above blog has been updated with new information.

Comments

[appliance repair Los Angeles]

Es evidente que hay mucho que aprender acerca de esto. Creo que hizo algunas cosas buenas en características también. Sigue trabajando, gran trabajo!

[transmisin en vivo de televisin]

hola, Chicos, Slo quiero decir lo que es un gran blog ha llegado hasta aqu! He estado alrededor por mucho tiempo, pero finalmente decidi mostrar mi aprecio por vuestro trabajo! Pulgar hacia arriba, y mantenerlo en marcha!

[Name]

Hoe kan ik u vragen voor meer informatie? Grote post meer wenst te weten ...

[Michelle Etlin, Kensington, Md.]

And about time, and kudos to a judge with courage, and we are on our way to becoming civilized!