Posted on 05/23/2014 12:58:11 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
The New York Times has been touting a study purporting to show that 4 percent of death row inmates have been “falsely convicted.” “Falsely convicted” is not “innocent.” But after being processed through the lawyer-to-journalist telephone game, “insignificant procedural errors” quickly becomes “27 guys didn’t do it!”
What the study actually shows is that those sentenced to death are more likely to have their convictions overturned than those sentenced to prison.
Yeah, we knew that. Anti-death penalty fanatics fight every execution tooth and claw. Sometimes they get lucky. What the statisticians have proved is that it’s very difficult to be executed in this country.
Most of the media cited this pointless study to proclaim that “statistical analysis” proves that 4 percent of people on death row are innocent. They just have to be! And if you disagree, you must hate science.
Whether innocent people have been executed is not a matter that lends itself to statistical analysis. We have the names of every person who has been executed — 1,373 since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.
A few dozen lawyers could each take home a stack of case files for the weekend and find the innocent guy — if there were one. But despite years of searching by single-minded zealots, they still don’t have the name of one innocent person executed in at least the last half-century.
Identifying the innocent has lead to embarrassments in the past. In this week’s and next week’s columns, we’ll review the left’s last few poster boys for “innocence.”
First: Troy Davis.
The day of Troy Davis’ execution, MSNBC and CNN went live until midnight to cover it, much like the 9/11 terrorist attack. Rachel Maddow posted an article claiming there was “persistent doubt that the death-row inmate is guilty of the crime of which he was convicted,” under the headline, “Georgia plans to kill Troy Davis tomorrow.”
(This was a delightful change from Rachel’s usual nightly smirk-fest.)
A reporter for the British Guardian claimed Davis was “very possibly innocent.” Amnesty International issued a statement after the execution, announcing that Georgia had “executed a person who may well be innocent.” (In the same sense that I “may well be” an astronaut named Smitty.)
The New York Times editorialized about “A Grievous Wrong” being done to Troy Davis, citing “reports about police misconduct, the recantation of testimony by a string of eyewitnesses and reports from other witnesses that another person had confessed to the crime.”
In all criminal appeals, defense lawyers roll out claims of “police misconduct,” preposterously unbelievable “new” witnesses and a surprise “confession” by someone else.
In fact, that’s a single typewriter key at the Times, used for all reports on criminal convictions. I have my own typewriter key to describe Times’ editorials on executions: “reports about extreme self-righteousness, excessive moral preening, obliviousness to the facts, and lies from a string of journalists.”
Always check to see if the person suddenly confessing to a crime will face any penalty for doing so. You will find that surprise confessions invariably come from those already serving the maximum sentence or that the statute of limitations has run.
(The Times editorial didn’t mention the police officer murdered by Davis. A few days later, an article on the execution did mention the victim in the fifth paragraph — and then spelled his name wrong.)
Those of you who follow my work assiduously know that Davis shot and killed an off-duty cop, Mark MacPhail, in a busy Burger King parking lot in front of dozens of witnesses, including people who knew him, as well as a van full of Air Force airmen. (He didn’t recant.)
After shooting the cop once, Davis sauntered up to the cop’s body and shot him again, directly in the head. As one of the airmen told the jury in identifying Davis: “You don’t forget someone that stands over and shoots someone.”
The much-ballyhooed “recantations” in Davis’ case were typical, which is to say: nothing of the sort. Years after the trial, defense lawyers trick witnesses into making small, inconsequential alterations to their testimony. Then the lawyers rush to the press claiming the witness has “recanted.”
For example, Davis’ lawyer prepared an affidavit for the girlfriend of the homeless man Davis was beating when MacPhail intervened and got shot. The affidavit was consistent with her trial testimony in all respects — including identifying Davis as the killer — except that the lawyer altered her description of events to say that Davis had been “arguing” with her boyfriend before shooting the cop.
The girlfriend would have had no way to know — years later — that this was any different from her original trial testimony. She signed the lawyer-drafted affidavit, but didn’t consider it important enough to get notarized. Then she died.
Out of 34 witnesses for the prosecution, that was one of the five purported “recantations.” Normal people hear that and say, “ARE YOU KIDDING ME? THAT’S WHAT YOU’RE CALLING A ‘RECANTATION’?”
One begins to see why the criminal lobby has turned to statistics, rather than specific cases, to claim that America executes the innocent.
The headline doesn’t match the article...
I like Ann’s 45 are serial killers, we can also safely assume that between 1 and 5% are also child molesters too.
Who can argue with science? It’s settled science too, numbers don’t lie.
Its hijack your own thread day. 2 in the last 10 minutes alone.
RE: The headline doesn’t match the article...
That’s the original title of the article and I’m not allowed to change it.
Persistent doubt?
in front of dozens of witnesses, including people who knew him, as well as a van full of Air Force airmen
What does the smirker know that I don't?
Also, "innocent of committing a specific crime" is not "undeserving of execution."
What’s all this then about New York Times reporters being Cereal killers? Cereal is a wholesome and important part of a balanced breakfast.
NYT personnel have been serial murderers of the truth for 60 years now.
You know that brings up a good question, I was going to post a thread once when I noticed there was a word spell incorrectly, a very bad spelling...I just didn't post it, but What if I corrected the spelling, would that be like illegal or something?
In hindsight I guess I could of posted in my comment section the correct spelling, but still could I change the Headline to make it correct?
Bueller, anybody!
add (sic) after the misspelled word, short for confirming an original spelling error...
better yet, put sic in [] brackets so that the para marks aren’t thought of as part of the original.
Never mind.
To equate serial killers with NYTimes reporters is an insult to serial killers.
The best way to get the death penalty rolling again, as a fair, but timely process, is to reform the federal judiciary, so that few appeals are heard about state death penalties.
Yes, federal judges should still hear the few appeals, but under strict rules.
1) States are qualified to execute, so federal judges cannot dispute the means of execution.
2) All federal appeals of the death penalty move to the head of the federal docket, and judges can only allow three one-month continuances: one for the defense, one for the prosecution, and one at their discretion.
3) Information extraneous to the trial court is also extraneous to the appeal. It does not matter if 90% of those executed are black, for example. It is not germane to a particular appeal.
4) States should be abundantly clear that no single person can commute or pardon. Even the governor must have the recommendation of the board of pardons and paroles.
>>That’s the original title of the article and I’m not allowed to change it.<<
Sorry, I should have directed it at Ms. Coulter.
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