|
|
| Supreme Court to Hear Texas Death Row Inmate's Case |
| By Reuters |
| Published: 04/24/2003 |
|
The U.S. Supreme Court said on Monday it would hear the case of a Texas death row inmate who claims prosecutors at his trial suppressed key evidence favorable to him. The case involved Delma Banks, a black man with no prior criminal record who was sentenced to die for robbing and shooting to death Richard Whitehead, a white 16-year-old, in 1980 in the east Texas town of Nash. Banks was 21 at the time. The high court on March 12 granted a stay of execution just minutes before Banks was scheduled to be put to death by lethal injection. The justices granted the stay while they weighed whether to hear his appeal. Supporters have said Banks was wrongly convicted, his right to a fair trial marred by alleged prosecutorial misconduct, ineffective legal assistance and the deliberate selection of an all-white jury. They said Banks never was able to present evidence that prosecutors failed to inform defense lawyers that a key witness was a paid informant and another witness obtained a reduced sentence after testifying against Banks. Three former federal judges, including former FBI Director William Sessions, who is from Texas, filed a brief in support of Banks urging the Supreme Court to hear the case. A federal judge initially granted a habeas corpus petition by Banks overturning his sentence. But a U.S. appeals court overruled the decision and reinstated the death sentence. Lawyers for Banks argued the appeals court misapplied and misinterpreted well-established Supreme Court precedent in its ruling. The high court agreed to consider whether the appeals court committed legal error in rejecting Banks' claim that the prosecution suppressed evidence casting doubt on the testimony of a key witness against him. The testimony prejudiced him during the sentencing part of his trial, Banks' lawyers said. They also argued the appeals court should have weighed the impact of mitigating evidence collectively, rather than separately, in concluding whether it would have changed the outcome at sentencing. The justices also agreed to consider a third question involving whether 'evidentiary hearings' in habeas proceedings were similar to civil trials. The high court will not consider a fourth question by Banks' lawyers claiming alleged jury discrimination. Banks had shown that from 1975 through 1980, Bowie County prosecutors accepted 80 percent of qualified white jurors and eliminated 90 percent of blacks in felony cases. They used a code, writing 'b' or 'n' by the names of blacks on jury lists. Prosecutors argued they had race-neutral reasons to remove the four potential black jurors in Banks' pool. Banks' lawyer never objected during the trial. The Supreme Court ruled in February that another Texas death row inmate, Thomas Miller-El, should get a hearing to present similar evidence of racial bias in his jury selection. In Banks' case, the Supreme Court will hear arguments and issue a decision during its term that begins in October. |
advertise
|
privacy policy
|
add URL
|
about us
|
terms/disclaimer
|
contact us
|
join our team
|
help
Comments:
No comments have been posted for this article.
Login to let us know what you think