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What is the Governor's Problem with Clearing Innocent People's Names??? -

Tuesday, July 21, 2009


Last week, I called on Governor Perry to sign a pardon for Timothy Cole. He has continued to deny Mr. Cole's family's request for a pardon, repeatedly citing an Attorney General's opinion that precludes posthumous pardons.

Since Governor Perry was apparently not swayed by the Texas Legislative Council's report that suggested that he did have the power to issue posthumous pardons, State Senator Rodney Ellis submitted a request for a new Attorney General's opinion regarding whether Texas governors can grant posthumous pardons.

I look forward to reading the new AG's opinion and continue to hope that Governor Perry will bring Timothy Cole's family some peace by signing the pardon. However, the whole thing leaves me wondering what is the real motivation behind Perry's unwillingness to clear an innocent man's name? There is no fear that he is actually guilty - DNA has cleared him and the true culprit has since confessed to the rape for which Cole was wrongly convicted.

The matter makes me think of Perry's veto of the expunction bill - again, if someone isn't found guilty of committing a crime (and they don't plead guilty), why should his or her name and criminal record suggest otherwise? This is not being "tough on crime," this is being tough on the innocent.*

*and yes, I realize that some people have their cases dismissed even when factually "guilty" due to some other reason - often mitigating evidence in the interest of justice. But if we empower prosecutors to determine whether a committed crime is worth pursuing, and they decide to dismiss, then there's no functional reason to insist on waiting the full statute of limitations period.

(photo via eschipul's flickrstream)

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posted by Kristi Couvillon   permalink   0 Comments

To Kill a Mockingbird and Posthumous Pardons -

Friday, July 10, 2009

Earlier this week, I was talking with Kristin about To Kill a Mockingbird. (It recently played at the Paramount Theatre's Summer Film Series.) I remarked to her that every time I read the book or watch the movie, I find myself truly hoping and thinking that maybe this time Atticus Finch will win the trial and Tom Robinson will go free, even though I already know the ending.


I then pondered out loud whether Finch and Robinson would prevail in this day and age in our home state. Have we made that much progress? Somehow our conversation wandered into a discussion about Timothy Cole, who died in prison after being wrongly convicted of raping a Texas Tech student, and was later exonerated by Judge Charlie Baird after DNA testing proved that he was not the assailant.

Today I read in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that the Texas Legislative Council issued a report showing that the Governor has the power to issue poshumous pardons and should do so for Mr. Cole.

Governor Perry has previously stated that an old AG's ruling dictates that in order to issue a posthumous pardon, he must first get authority from Texans through a constitutional amendment. This report now gives him the authority to do so without waiting for the passage of an amendment. As pointed out in an entry on Grits for Breakfast, the worst that could happen is that the courts could later say "no." No one with any standing to sue has threatened to do so, and I cannot dream up any reason for anyone to do so.

While unfortunately this will never bring Mr. Cole back to his family, it is Texas's chance to symbolically change the ending to To Kill a Mockingbird. Sign the pardon, Governor Perry!

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posted by Kristi Couvillon   permalink   1 Comments

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