After serving 25 years in the Texas Prison System, Michael Morton has been released pending the final results of DNA tests expected to prove he did not kill his wife.  John Bradley, former head of the Texas Forensic Science Commission and a Rick Perry appointee, has recently been the DA in charge of Mr. Morton's case and in that position has tried for six years to block the DNA tests that could exonerate Morton.  Mr. Bradley now says he had "good faith" reasons to oppose the DNA tests.  Good faith???  Suppression of evidence that could prove one man innocent and potentially lead to the discovery and possible conviction of the person actually responsible is "good faith?"  Under Mr. Bradley's leadership, he consistently worked against the Commission's goal of "Justice through Science."  In John Bradley's world, good faith must mean winning at any cost, even the cost of a man's life. He proved that in the Cameron Todd Willingham case (Mr. Willingham was executed in 2004) by delaying for 19 months the findings that the science used to convict Mr. Willingham of killing his three young daughters was seriously flawed.  John Bradley's political patron, Governor Rick Perry, cooperated with Mr. Bradley by blocking the testimony of Craig Beyler, the expert hired by the Commission to investigate the Willingham case.  With so much emphasis on our economic situation in recent years, we cannot lose sight of other priorities.  Shouldn't fairness and transparency in our justice system warrant scrutiny?  Isn't a man's life and freedom worth our "good faith"  efforts?
 


Comments

Sheryl Parrish
10/15/2011 10:17

I agree that we need to do something to get innocent people justice and not "just us". If you're not rich enough to hire your own dream team of lawyers and forensic scientists, you're convicted because we are so geared for winning. God forbid that your record be blemished by having one get away. Even though in our justice system the principle of law that is commonly used from English jurist William Blackstone, "better ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer" is supposed to safeguard against miscarriages of justice. When the governor deliberately subverts the course of the law by trying to save the reputations of his friends, all of the govenor's friends as well as the governor need to be judged by the same standards that the innnocent was judged. Judged by the same faulty evidence. Defended by the same overworked, underpaid public defender. Given the same verdict based on that same faulty evidence and not allowed due process.

Reply



Leave a Reply