Michael Morton freed Oct 4, 2011
“The prosecution’s complete disregard for the truth in this case is stunning,” said Nina Morrison, a Senior Staff Attorney with the Innocence Project. “Rather than try to get to the bottom of what really happened, the prosecution went to great lengths to keep evidence pointing to Mr. Morton’s innocence from his lawyers..."
Such prosecutorial misconduct has been exposed in many other exonerations on all levels of convictions. The Death Penalty is too risky for us to keep in place. As responsible citizens in a civilized nation I hope we will all take action to spur the Legislature to enact legislation requiring open file discovery in every case.
(experts from the article at Innocence Project) :
"The prosecution’s complete disregard for the truth in this case is stunning,” said Nina Morrison, a Senior Staff Attorney with the Innocence Project. “Rather than try to get to the bottom of what really happened, the prosecution went to great lengths to keep evidence pointing to Mr. Morton’s innocence from his lawyers, blatantly ignoring direct orders from the judge who conducted a review of the evidence. This case and the other tragic murder that might have been prevented if the leads had been investigated will hopefully spur the Legislature to enact legislation requiring open file discovery in every case.”
(Austin, TX – October 4, 2011) Michael Morton walked out of a Williamson County courtroom today after his 1987 murder conviction was overturned because of new DNA evidence pointing to another man. Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley joined with the Innocence Project in seeking Morton’s release after it was discovered that the DNA of an unnamed male linked to the Morton crime through a bandana that also contained the blood of the victim was also found at the scene of a later murder in Travis County. The unnamed male is now under investigation for both crimes. Morton served nearly 25 years in prison before being released.
N.Y is working with laws to hold prosecutors in check:
http://m.nysenate.gov/legislation/bill/A2845-2011
Provides that if a prosecutor withholds information proving the innocence of an individual convicted of or charged with a crime, he or she shall be guilty of a felony with the term of imprisonment being twice that of the term of imprisonment the individual charged with the crime is faced with or twice that which the individual has been sentenced to.
North. CA Innocence Project report on Prosecutorial Misconduct:
http://law.scu.edu/ncip/file/ProsecutorialMisconduct_BookEntire_online%20version.pdf
read more details on the Morton case at this link:
http://www.innocenceproject.org/Content/Texas_Man_Freed_After_Serving_Nearly_25_Years_for_Murdering_His_Wife_That_New_DNA_Evidence_Shows_He_Didnt_Commit.php
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