That's the title of an Austin American-Statesman editorial regarding the Michael Morton case. It appeared in the Sunday edition.
The main goal of any examination into the case of Christine and Michael Morton must be the search for truth and justice. District Judge Billy Ray Stubblefield of Williamson County emphasized that in his directive to prosecutors and the Innocence Project investigating new evidence that might exonerate Michael Morton, who has been in prison for nearly 25 years for killing his wife, Christine.
"We must all have the courage to learn the facts and let them lead the way," Stubblefield said in August, when new details emerged about DNA evidence. He is right. Our system of justice is not mistake-proof. But its measure should be taken not just by how many times the right person is convicted and imprisoned, but how well the justice system responds when it errs. This case is testing that core principle of justice.
There are several revelations that raise troubling questions about the case, specifically whether Michael Morton committed the murder and whether prosecutors who handled the case hid exculpatory evidence to help win a conviction. American-Statesman writer Chuck Lindell provides another compelling report on the case in today's editions.
And:
Another issue that must be examined is whether prosecutors who originally handled the case were involved in misconduct, as the Innocence Project claims. Before recusing himself, Stubblefield, said that issue should be examined. We agree, if for no other reason than to unearth deficiencies or mistakes that can prevent wrongful convictions in the future. District Judge Sid Harle of San Antonio has replaced Stubblefield.
In this case, the Innocence Project alleges that prosecutors hid key evidence that would have helped Morton prove his innocence. At issue is a transcript of a phone conversation between a sheriff's investigator and Christine Morton's mother, Rita Kirkpatrick. Kirkpatrick said Morton's 3-year-old son indicated that he had witnessed the murder and that the killer, whom he described as a "monster," was not his father.
This is a case that demands answers, transparency and full cooperation by all parties. Morton was by most accounts an average working guy living an average life. He was not a thug, not homeless, not poor. If the justice system failed him, it can fail anyone. But its redemption can be found in its ability to correct its mistakes.
Lindell's latest article, referrenced in the editorial, is, "Circumstantial case convicting Morton of murder now under attack." Here's the beginning :
Legs buckling as his guilty verdict was read aloud, Michael Morton dropped into a chair, laid his head on the defense table and sobbed.
"I didn't do this," Morton told the court 24 years ago. "That's all I can say. I did not do this."
New evidence raises the distinct possibility that Morton was telling the truth, that another man brutally murdered his wife in their Williamson County home and moved on to commit additional crimes — possibly including a 1988 murder in Austin — while Morton spent the next quarter-century in prison.
The investigation of that new evidence is proceeding.
But back in 1987, when Morton was convicted of murder in a case based on circumstantial evidence, everybody who mattered — from investigators to jurors — was absolutely certain that he killed his wife, Christine, and callously left their 3-year-old son, Eric, alone at the murder scene.
According to an Austin American-Statesman review of trial transcripts and exhibits entered into evidence:
• The sheriff zeroed in on Morton almost immediately and was ready to make an arrest within a week of the murder.
• The medical examiner, using a questionable technique, declared a time of death that destroyed Morton's alibi.
• The prosecutor presented a blistering condemnation of Morton as cruel, manipulative and sexually abnormal.
In the end, 12 jurors needed less than two hours to find Morton guilty of murder, then another 30 minutes to dispense the maximum sentence: life in prison.
Securing the guilty verdict was no slam dunk.
No evidence directly tied Morton to the crime. He had no history of violence. And the murder weapon, a blunt object made of wood, was never found.
Even so, prosecutor Ken Anderson convinced jurors that Morton killed his wife for the basest of reasons, then staged a fake burglary in an inept attempt to deflect blame.
"Life in prison is a lot better than he deserves," Anderson, now a state district judge, said at the time.
Earlier coverage of the Michael Morton case begins at the link. Another hearing in the case is scheduled for today.
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