That's the title of Alan Turner's report in this morning's Houston Chronicle. It refers to Texas State Senator John Whitmire, Dean of the Senate and Chair of the Criminal Justice Committee. LINK
Houston state Sen. John Whitmire on Thursday vowed to prod the state's forensic science commission to probe lingering problems at the Houston Police Department's crime lab and to move forward in its investigation of a 1991 arson fire that killed three Corsicana children and sent their father to the execution chamber.
The Houston Democrat said he will summon the commission's newly appointed chairman, Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley, to appear before his Senate Criminal Justice Committee on Nov. 10.
“I'm going to direct Bradley to come to Houston and get to the bottom of it,” Whitmire said regarding recent revelations that evidence for more than 1,000 active cases — sex crimes, homicides and burglaries among them — are backlogged at the police department lab. “This should be one of the commission's highest priorities.”
Scandal surrounding the lab's poor performance, which came to light seven years ago, was one of the major reasons the Legislature created the forensic science commission.
Whitmire described Bradley, who previously had been employed by the senator's committee, as “smart” and his conduct as “transparent.” But he said he will call on the forensic science commission chairman to respond to concerns that the investigation of the deadly Corsicana fire not be delayed.
Gov. Rick Perry named Bradley chairman of the nine-member panel two days before it was to hear crucial testimony from Baltimore fire expert Craig Beyler, who had been extremely critical of the manner in which the purported arson case was investigated. Bradley, saying that he hadn't had time to become familiar with the case, cancelled the meeting.
And:
Bradley this week said he is uncertain when he will convene the panel, noting that one position remains vacant.
While saying he didn't want to “politicize” Perry's decision to replace Bassett and two other commission members more than three weeks after their terms expired, Whitmire nevertheless accused the governor of “bad timing.”
“I can't get inside the mind of Perry even on a good day,” he said.
When Bradley appears before Whitmire's committee, Whitmire said he will ask for a status report on the case.
The Perry Ax was also noticed at Forensic magazine, "Does Texas Forensics Panel Put Politics Before Justice?"
Gov. Rick Perry's surprise appointment of a conservative ally to lead a panel investigating whether Texas executed an innocent man has raised the question of whether politics will trump science on the state's forensics board.
Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley has vowed to "let the facts lead us wherever they do." But his first move as the ranking member of the Texas Forensic Science Commission was to cancel a meeting set for Friday, citing a need to study the issues confronting the panel.
The board was about to consider a report critical of an arson finding that led Cameron Todd Willingham to be executed for the deaths of his three daughters.
Earlier coverage of the Todd Willingham case begins here. More on the HPD Crime Lab is here, with related posts in the crime lab index.
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