The case of Justin Wolfe in Virginia is a case study in prosecutorial misconduct. "Appeals: Reconsider," is the title of an editorial in today's Richmond Times-Dispatch.
In 2002, Justin Wolfe was convicted of murder for hire and sentenced to death. The Northern Virginia case involved drugs. Wolfe is not a saint, but there is considerable doubt regarding his guilt. Someone else has confessed to the killing. Last month a U.S. district judge tossed Wolfe's conviction.
Judge Raymond Jackson was unsparing in his criticism of the prosecution. He said the case against Wolfe was "tenuous" and "replete with hearsay and speculation." The judge found certain action by the prosecution as "not only unconstitutional in regards to due process, but abhorrent to the judicial process."
And:
Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli intends to appeal the ruling. The Times-Dispatch's inclination is to support verdicts from original trials. We find Jackson's opinion persuasive. Cuccinelli should reconsider the appeal.
Earlier coverage of the Wolfe case begins at the link. Related posts are in the prosecutorial misconduct index.
The responsibility of the state to provide exculpatory evidence to the defense was articulated in the 1963 Supreme Court ruling in Brady v. Maryland; more via Oyez.
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