The persistence of the death penalty is only one way in which the United States stands out from the rest of the Western world on crime and punishment.
It also has the highest incarceration rate of any country, with more than two million people behind bars. (China, second in the rankings, has an estimated 1.5 million, and Russia just short of 900,000.) The US has just 5 per cent of the world’s population, but 25 per cent of its overall prison population.

Beldar: “Sigh. Alphie, I didn’t link to any transcripts. The trancripts are what the court reporters type up with the questions and answers. What I quoted from… is just the Fifth Circuit’s written opinion.”

And the transcripts show us something, don’t they?

1) They had a gun and decided to go out and rob.
2) They did in fact go out and rob.
3) Foster claims they just ended up there. Which is confusing because from his and Brown’s versions which have changed, they were following for a party, weren’t following at all, heading home, or avoiding the police. One of the Justices put it succinctly by saying:

“The state habeas court was free to take judicial notice of (1) the locations near Crossroads Mall in Northwest San Antonio where the four conspirators committed a pair of armed robberies on the night in question and (2) the location of the LaHood residence in extreme North Central San Antonio. The testimony established the general route taken by Foster as he followed Mary Patrick’s vehicle from an apartment complex off Blanco Road, across Bitters Road, north on San Pedro avenue, and into the neighborhood and the LaHood residence, a distance in excess of five miles. S.F. Trial, Volume XVII, testimony of Mary Patrick, at pp. 499-50 . . . . When viewed by a reasonable finder of fact, the foregoing evidence utterly refutes Dillard’s assertions at Foster’s state habeas hearing that Dillard directed Foster to drive through the residential neighborhood where the LaHood residence was located in an effort to avoid the police while en route to Dillard’s home in extreme North East Bexar County. Assuming the state habeas court had any familiarity whatsoever with the geography of Bexar County, that court would have had no choice but to reject this aspect of Dillard’s testimony at Foster’s state habeas hearing as PATENTLY ABSURD (my capitalization). Given the circuitous nature of the route required to reach the LaHood residence from the location where Foster began following Mary Patrick’s vehicle, only one inference can reasonably be drawn from Foster’s actions: Foster was doing precisely what Steen testified the four co-conspirators were doing…looking for more prey.

4. Foster turned the car around for no good reason. That reason, too, keeps changing with the times. However, what doesn’t cahnge is that he stopped the car while the shooter got out.
5. The only surviving witness testified that Brown had a bandana over his face.
6. After the murder, Foster chose to stop the car. Let him back in. Didn’t see if the victim was alive or give him aid.
7. Told Brown to hide the gun on several occassions.
8. Foster claims he had no control. He was the only driver of that car. Is he saying that his friends held a gun to his head too?
9. The documents reveal that forensic evidence put the barrel of the gun within 6 inches, they say probably closer. That would be 1-5 inches. So much for self defense. Sounds like a gun being pointed at your face as someone demands your money.

Ultimately, the most damning evidence that it was a robbery is the fact that Foster was the sole driver. That he picked out the cars to be followed. That he did in fact follow those cars for over 5 miles. (A mapquest search has over 8 turns, crossing intersections and entering a secluded neighborhood). He turned the car around and stopped the car. . . Foster claims Brown was a Romeo, that’s why no one paid attention to him when he got out. Is he serious? It was 2 or 3am, they had just committed 2 armed robberies, they had just stalked them for a long time, to get a number? Wow, that’s priceless

It’s a small point but I had the same “West Texas” moment/reaction when WLS said this:

Dillard testified Foster was the group’s driver, not the “getaway driver”. Uhh, ok. I didn’t know armed robbers used chauffeurs, but I haven’t spent much time in West Texas so I can’t say one way or another. Maybe they are heirs to oil money.

LaHood’s murder occurred in San Antonio so these defendants are more likely to have drug money than oil money. Plus, real West Texas oil men drive their own pickup trucks.

Hee hee! I almost spewed on my computer when I read this.

We don’t mix divisions out here in West Texas so the jurors undoubtedly came from the El Paso Division of the Western District of Texas. That means they came primarily from the City of El Paso and possibly from the surrounding area, but there isn’t much surrounding El Paso. South is Mexico, West and North is New Mexico (an entirely different District) and East is … not much.

It’s a small point but I had the same “West Texas” moment/reaction when WLS said this:

Dillard testified Foster was the group’s driver, not the “getaway driver”. Uhh, ok. I didn’t know armed robbers used chauffeurs, but I haven’t spent much time in West Texas so I can’t say one way or another. Maybe they are heirs to oil money.

LaHood’s murder occurred in San Antonio so these defendants are more likely to have drug money than oil money. Plus, real West Texas oil men drive their own pickup trucks.

Keep in mind that in federal court, jurors are drawn from the entire district — not just the city where the trial takes place. So, its entirely possible that the Compean and Ramos jurors came from all over West Texas, and not just El Paso.

“Funny isn’t it how that Texas jury rejected Compean and Ramos’ claim that they felt they were threatened by that drug courier running for Mexico”

El Paso is part of Texas? You could have fooled me.

(I had to do it too)

What is even funnier to me is when Johnny Sutton describes the jury as a “West Texas Jury”–especially since I started my career as a prosecutor in Lubbock, Texas.