Patterico's Pontifications

2/13/2006

Clemency Bid for Convicted Killer Is Reportedly Supported by Forged Affidavits

Filed under: Crime,General — Patterico @ 6:38 am



Via Dafydd ab Hugh we learn this:

Sworn statements of five of six jurors urging clemency for death row inmate Michael Morales — a convicted murderer they recommended be executed — were forged documents, the San Joaquin County district attorney’s office said Friday.

The D.A.’s office apparently interviewed the five jurors, who said that 1) they had never heard of the defense investigator who had supposedly interviewed them and secured the affidavits from them, 2) they had never seen the affidavits before, 3) in one case, the juror’s name was even misspelled, and 4) none of the five supports clemency.

Ouch. This is not helpful to his cause. And there’s one defense investigator who has a lot of ‘splainin’ to do.

19 Responses to “Clemency Bid for Convicted Killer Is Reportedly Supported by Forged Affidavits”

  1. Five of the six? Does that mean the sixth one is valid?

    [Yes, but it left the issue of clemency for the governor. See the linked article. — Patterico]

    Dana (3e4784)

  2. I think Ken Starr has some ‘splainin’ to do, too.

    Xrlq (839872)

  3. Patterico, maybe you can confirm my suspicions about the accusation of the defense lawyer about prosecutorial intimidation of the jurors. I think he must be nuts.

    See my post here about the WaPo version of this story yesterday.

    Attila (Pillage Idiot) (dfa1f1)

  4. I followed this story as it developed on KFI late last week. The John and Ken show taped an interview with one of the jurors (#1? Anita?) who said that despite the claims that the jail informant’s testimony was false, she still favored the death sentence because it was clear that Morales had been laying in wait and tortured the victim and it was such a horrible crime. She said she deemphasized the informant’s testimony (since attacked because he claims he and Morales spoke in Spanish, which the defendant doesn’t speak, and described the crime having no remorse) from the start. This interview was taped on Wed or Thurs for taped broadcast on their Saturday show.

    Then the Attorney General’s office calls KFI wanting a copy of the interview, which John and Ken (rabid death penalty advocates — they started an “Hour of Death” segment for Tookie) had been hyping. Turns out that the juror being interviewed was one of the six whose signatures were on statements saying they now oppose the death penalty for Morales, that had been part of the clemency petition.

    According to the Headline News trumpeted by KFI on Friday (and/or Thursday?) afternoons, this juror now tells the AG’s office that she never spoke to the investigator who supposedly took her statement, never spoke to the Morales defense team. She opposes clemency, wants death. And shortly after, the AG’s office says five of the six jurors who supposedly signed the clemency declarations know nothing of the investigator and still support death.

    [Very strange that in trying to recreate this, I find NOTHING on the KFI or John and Ken websites.]

    So that’s the history as I heard it before the wire services and newspapers picked up the story over the weekend. Funny that as Morales will get executed, at least I get to smile as Ken Starr’s reputation is dragged through the mud.

    p.s. — Before the verdict comes in, how about the Prosecutorial Misconduct in the Wempe priest abuse case? The defense admits he committed earlier molestations (barred by the Statute). The prosecution says he molested a younger sibling more recently, within the statute. Then the case starts falling apart — the victim’s story has major proven inconsistencies. So the prosecutor argues in closing that the defendant priest “should pay for his sins.” Absolutely outrageous.

    nosh (d8da01)

  5. Today’s interview:

    At 3:10 today, John and Ken of KFI again interviewed juror Anita, from the Morales trial. She said that following her interview being taped this past Thursday, her in-laws got a call from the Attorney General’s office trying to contact her. She called back, and was told that she was one of the jurors who had a declaration submitted supporting clemency. She said that was untrue, and actually she had been trying to be permitted to witness the execution.

    There was discussion of a comment she supposedly made with another juror about there being too few Hispanics on the jury. (Hosts then explain that the jury ethnicity is one of the recent claims made by Morales’s defense. Then they expound about the need for an investigation of the investigator and attorneys Keneth Starr and David Senior.)

    The interview resumes with them talking about an extensive, detailed declaration that describes several incidents. She says nothing was true, so she agreed to a new declaration. She says there was no intimidation or coercion when agents came by her house to pick up the corrected declaration.

    The hosts then postulate some more and then thank her.

    nosh (d8da01)

  6. […] Michael Morales juror “Anita” on KFI’s John & Ken Show now confirms the allegations that her signature was forged on documents calling for clemency. […]

    The Southern California Law Blog » Morales Juror Confirms That Her Signature Was Forged (36e489)

  7. Xrlq, why would you think Ken Star is involved? Do you really think he would be responsible for interviewing the jurors and taking the statements?

    Doc Rampage (47be8d)

  8. Not directly, but at this juncture it doesn’t look like he tried too hard to investigate their authenticity, either. Think Dan Rather.

    Xrlq (839872)

  9. Daf Ab has added a link to that post stating that the defense team has retracted the letters.

    The ACLU is, I’m sure, drawing up an ineffective assistance claim as we speak. Or type. Whatever it is we do here.

    See Dubya (5073f6)

  10. Every capital defendant needs two lawyers — one to screw up the defense and one to file an ineffective assistance of counsel claim. Sometimes you almost think this is the plan.

    Attila (Pillage Idiot) (dfa1f1)

  11. I think it unlikely that lead counsel had anything to do with procuring the false statements or submitting them knowing they were false,
    Starr took this on as a pro bono matter, and I think it unfortunate that he is being tarred with this.

    clarice (c49871)

  12. I heard the KFI show and have read most of not all the filings and declaratons (all linked on my new blog).

    Starr and Senior have witdrawn ALL declarations where his investigator (Kathleen Culhane) was involved.
    That also included other declarations the DA/AG said were forged.

    Consigliere (3f8ad8)

  13. From the LA Times article:

    Loyola University law professor
    Laurie Levenson, a former federal
    prosecutor, said Morales now faces
    a difficult task in trying to salvage
    his clemency petition.

    “It’s unbelievable. This just dooms
    the man’s fate,” she said. “Now,
    he’s not just a killer, he’s a liar and
    a cheat too.”

    Well, three strikes and you’re out.

    Justice Frankfurter (2dcd84)

  14. Now, he’s not just a killer, he’s a liar and a cheat too.

    It’s incredible: Not only did he murder someone but he also LIED!

    Attila (Pillage Idiot) (dfa1f1)

  15. WIth no forged documents to file, Morales loses his bid to delay his execution on 8th Amendment grounds.

    A federal judge today refused to delay death row inmate Michael Morales’ Feb. 21 execution, but told prison officials they would have to change how they administer the lethal injection that kills him.

    In his ruling, Judge Jeremy Fogel said officials either must kill Morales with barbiturates alone, or provide an anesthesiologist or other medical professional to monitor that the prisoner is unconscious before they deliver a fatal dose of a heart-stopping chemical.

    Morales v. Hickman, 06-219.

    Consigliere (3f8ad8)

  16. I’d buy a ticket to this ACLU fundraiser:

    How about we tar and feather Morales, put him out in a Texas quail hunt, and let him make a run for it.

    Black Jack (d8da01)

  17. Morales is having a bad day today.

    His writ to halt his execution was denied by the California Supreme Court and the AG agreed to comply with the new rules for execution meaning on the 21st, California will execute it’s third inmate in as many months. … barring more forgeries turning up.

    Consigliere (3f8ad8)

  18. […] Oh, and by the way, the affidavits the defense filed on the killers behalf that got the judge involved were forged. […]

    Blue Crab Boulevard » Blog Archive » An Eye For An Eye (a177fd)


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