Several members of a state commission investigating whether Texas executed a man based on a flawed arson investigation had urged Gov. Rick Perry not to replace the commission's chairman as a critical hearing approached.
But Perry did just that last week as part of a shakeup that could postpone the commission's findings in the case of Cameron Todd Willingham, whom Texas put to death in 2004 for killing his three children in a fire.
Critics have charged that Perry, by removing three of the nine members of the Forensic Science Commission days before it was to hear a critical report on the arson investigation in Willingham's case, was trying to delay the panel's inquiry into Willingham's case, perhaps until after he faces a challenge from U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison in the March 2 Republican primary.
Last week, Perry aides told Austin defense lawyer Sam Bassett that the governor would not reappoint him to the commission. Since his term ended Sept. 1, Bassett was immediately replaced as the body's chairman by John Bradley, Williamson County's tough-on-crime district attorney. Two other commission members also learned they would not get new terms.
But in a Sept. 4 letter, commission member Sarah Kerrigan had urged Perry to keep Bassett at the helm. "Mr. Bassett has provided dedicated leadership to the commission during his two terms, and I recommend his reappointment under the strongest possible terms," Kerrigan wrote.
She did not mention the Willingham case in her letter, but she commended Bassett's leadership as the commission worked through a backlog of cases he inherited as chairman. She said Bassett's reappointment would "ensure a measure of stability to the commission during a time of great scrutiny."
Kerrigan, a forensic science professor at Sam Houston State University who was appointed to the commission by Attorney General Greg Abbott, could not be reached for comment Tuesday. Perry's office has offered little explanation for his decision not to reappoint Bassett.
And:
Alan Levy, who works in the Tarrant County district attorney's office, said Tuesday that he also had sent a letter urging Perry to retain Bassett as chairman.
Levy, like Bassett, learned recently from the governor's office that he would not be reappointed to the forensic panel.
"I thought the commission was at a critical stage," Levy said. Levy said he sent the letter Sept. 8 after Kerrigan told him Bassett was rumored to be in jeopardy. Perry's office did not respond, he said.
Christy Hoppy writes, " New chair unsure when state panel will proceed on flawed case that led toexecution in Corsicana fire," in today's Dallas Morning News.
The Texas Forensic Science Commission's inquiry into a flawed arson investigation that led to a Corsicana man's execution is on hold for now, and it's unclear how or when it will move forward, the commission's new chairman said Tuesday.
Gov. Rick Perry appointed Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley last week, two days before a scheduled public hearing with experts critical of the evidence used in Cameron Todd Willingham's murder-arson case. Bradley canceled the hearing, saying he and another new commissioner needed time to prepare.
And:
Bradley told The Dallas Morning News on Tuesday that he doesn't know when the board will take up its investigations again. He said he needs time to review the commission's two years' worth of work and to study the role of its members and the process they should use in moving forward.
"It is too important as a symbolic case, and as much as a real case, for us not to finish that work," Bradley said of the Willingham case. "But at the same time, I want to make sure the work is done in a way that is professional and has utmost integrity."
Bradley said the timetable for the board to act is also unclear because the governor has two more positions to fill, and he wants to wait until all new members are on board.
Re-creating the wheel in the investigation is unnecessary, and the delay is impeding justice for others serving time under questionable arson convictions, said Barry Scheck, co-director of the Innocence Project, which has used DNA evidence to free dozens of Texas inmates and has enlisted experts to study the Willingham case.
"I can understand him wanting to do his homework, but I can't understand in the final analysis why everything has to be brought to a halt," Scheck said.
Hoppe also notes:
Perry spokeswoman Katherine Cesinger said there is no current timetable for filling the board positions.
Under state law, the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association submits a list of 10 attorneys for the governor to select from. That list was filed Sept. 4, with the top recommendation being the reappointment of Bradley's predecessor as chairman, Sam Bassett.
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram has, "Perry's decision to dump forensics chairman came despite advice to keep him," by Dave Montgomery.
A statewide lawyers group that recommends nominees to the Texas Forensic Science Commission urged Gov. Rick Perry to retain commission Chairman Sam Bassett less than four weeks before the Austin lawyer was ousted in a commission shake-up that has stalled an inquiry involving a 2004 execution.
Three members of the commission, including two who were dismissed in the shake-up, also wrote Perry to urge Bassett’s reappointment, according to interviews and letters obtained Tuesday.
Perry has drawn national attention for his dismissal of Bassett and commission members Alan Levy, a prosecutor in the Tarrant County district attorney’s office, and Aliece Watts, a forensic scientist who lives in Burleson.
The dismissals were announced two days before the nine-member panel was scheduled to review a forensic report challenging the arson findings that that led to Cameron Todd Willingham’s execution five years ago.
And:
Perry has defended the dismissals as part of the normal appointments process, but critics have accused the state’s long-serving governor of gutting the commission to avoid potentially embarrassing findings while he is battling for re-election.
Bassett, offering fresh details of events preceding his firing, said Tuesday that he first realized that his position might be in danger after learning that Perry’s office had asked the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association to recommend possible replacements.
The association, one of the groups that make recommendations on nominations to the panel, submitted a list of 10 names but strongly recommended that Bassett be reappointed.
"In our opinion, he has done an excellent job and there is a great deal of unfinished business that should not be interrupted," Stanley G. Schneider, president of the association, said in a Sept. 4 letter to Perry. The association "believes that he will bring continuity and unique experience to the Commission which will aid the Commission in its important work."
Earlier coverage begins with this post. Editorial writers across Texas are roundly condemning Perry's move; those links, next.
The Beyler report is here in Adobe .pdf format. David Grann's New Yorker article is noted here. The Innocence Project's Todd Willingham resource page provides a concise overview of the Willingham case with links to all relevant documents.
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