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<DIV>Roger, there is no question that your arguments have some appeal, in the
sense that if we are to have the death penalty, there are some crimes that are
so heinous that they practically "cry out for it." </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>My problem with your "tinkering with the procedures" approach, in an
effort to "fine tune" the system so that our administration of justice
is fairer, is that efforts to eliminate systemic error that allows for the
conviction of the innocent will only reduce the error rate, but not eliminate
it. It seems to me that the costs of administering the death penalty
exceed the "benefit" of it, and that you also must accept as a "cost of doing
business" the inevitable execution of a few innocents. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I changed my views about the death penalty, which I once favored, after I
was appointed to represent Roy Roberts, a man that I came to believe was
innocent. Sadly, I was unable to spare his life or win his release.
Here is his clemency petition:</DIV>
<DIV><A
href="http://ccadp.org/clemencyroy.htm">http://ccadp.org/clemencyroy.htm</A></DIV>
<DIV>Here is an article about Roy on the Northwestern University School of Law's
Center on Wrongful Convictions:</DIV>
<DIV><A
href="http://www.law.northwestern.edu/depts/clinic/wrongful/Executions/Roberts_Missouri.htm">http://www.law.northwestern.edu/depts/clinic/wrongful/Executions/Roberts_Missouri.htm</A></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Having gone through the wringer of failing to save an innocent man's life,
I no longer accept an approach to the death penalty that amounts
to "collateral damage in the form of the execution of a few innocents is
acceptable." In my opinion, having the death penalty is not worth
that.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Bruce</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>----- Original Message -----
<DIV>From: "lfalen" <<A
href="mailto:lfalen@turbonet.com">lfalen@turbonet.com</A>></DIV>
<DIV>To: "Ted Moffett" <<A
href="mailto:starbliss@gmail.com">starbliss@gmail.com</A>>; "Bruce and Jean
Livingston" <<A
href="mailto:jeanlivingston@turbonet.com">jeanlivingston@turbonet.com</A>></DIV>
<DIV>Cc: <<A
href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com">vision2020@moscow.com</A>></DIV>
<DIV>Sent: Tuesday, April 24, 2007 12:30 PM</DIV>
<DIV>Subject: Re: [Vision2020] DNA exoneration reaches 200;questions remain for
justice system</DIV></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>>I am not sure that the death penalty should be totally
abolished. Some people like Duncan surely deserve it. Maybe it should be
restricted to just a few things. In any case due to number of people that are
convicted who are innocent, there needs to be better safe guards put in place.
In regard to the Attorney General's office, It does look like they blew it on
the Idaho Falls Cace. Although it does'nt rise to the same level of
seriousness, they have also been hit and miss on enforcing the Open Meeting Law.
In some cases they have done what they should. in others they have not. I will
get into this more at a later date.<BR>> Roger<BR>> -----Original
message-----<BR>> From: "Ted Moffett" <A
href="mailto:starbliss@gmail.com">starbliss@gmail.com</A><BR>> Date: Tue, 24
Apr 2007 02:11:16 -0700<BR>> To: "Bruce and Jean Livingston" <A
href="mailto:jeanlivingston@turbonet.com">jeanlivingston@turbonet.com</A><BR>>
Subject: [Vision2020] DNA exoneration reaches 200;questions remain for justice
system<BR>> <BR>>> Bruce et. al.<BR>>> <BR>>> <A
href="http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--dnaexonerations-20423apr23,0,1071686.story?coll=ny-region-apnewyork">http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--dnaexonerations-20423apr23,0,1071686.story?coll=ny-region-apnewyork</A><BR>>>
<BR>>> I guess this is some kind of milestone...But not all these cases
are death<BR>>> penalty cases. But the question is obvious: if
this many are exonerated by<BR>>> DNA, how many on death row or imprisoned
for other crimes are innocent who<BR>>> do not have DNA available to prove
or disprove their innocence?<BR>>> <BR>>> Likely a much larger
number!<BR>>> <BR>>> The price we must pay for a justice system, or
a justice system in need of<BR>>> radical improvement?<BR>>>
<BR>>> I won't even start...<BR>>> <BR>>> Ted
Moffett<BR>>> <BR>>> <BR>>> On 4/23/07, Bruce and Jean
Livingston <<A
href="mailto:jeanlivingston@turbonet.com">jeanlivingston@turbonet.com</A>>
wrote:<BR>>> ><BR>>> > We confronted two high profile
cases in the last couple of weeks, first,<BR>>> > a declaration
of innocence in the Duke Lacrosse case in NC, and second, the<BR>>> >
apparent innocence of Rauland Grube in a murder case from
southeastern<BR>>> > Idaho, on which I posted several days
ago.<BR>>> ><BR>>> > Now appears this series of editorials
from of all places, Texas. The<BR>>> > Dallas Morning News
editorial staff reversed its 100 year stance in favor of<BR>>> > the
death penalty. In so doing, it made many of the best arguments
for<BR>>> > reconsidering our willingness to retain the death
penalty. The editorial<BR>>> > pieces are thoughtful and worthy
of all citizens' review, especially in<BR>>> > states like Idaho that
continue to have the death penalty.<BR>>> ><BR>>> > I
thought you might be interested in these recent Dallas Morning News<BR>>>
> editorials. The Morning News is historically one of the most
conservative<BR>>> > major-city newspapers in the country, although it
moderated somewhat when<BR>>> > the "liberal" competition
folded.<BR>>> ><BR>>> ><BR>>> ><BR>>>
><BR>>> > <A
href="http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/editorials/stories/DN-toy_01edi.ART.State.Edition1.43b925d.html">http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/editorials/stories/DN-toy_01edi.ART.State.Edition1.43b925d.html</A><BR>>>
><BR>>> ><BR>>> ><BR>>> ><BR>>> > <A
href="http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/editorials/stories/DN-deathmonday2_16edi.ART.State.Edition1.42d305b.html">http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/editorials/stories/DN-deathmonday2_16edi.ART.State.Edition1.42d305b.html</A><BR>>>
><BR>>> ><BR>>> ><BR>>> ><BR>>> > <A
href="http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/editorials/stories/DN-deathmonday1_16edi.ART.State.Edition1.42d1ffd.html">http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/editorials/stories/DN-deathmonday1_16edi.ART.State.Edition1.42d1ffd.html</A><BR>>>
><BR>>> > The explanation about the Dallas Morning News' editorial
slant is from my<BR>>> > sister-in-law, who resides there, reads the
paper regularly, and forwarded<BR>>> > me the above links.<BR>>>
><BR>>> > Bruce Livingston<BR>>> ><BR>>>
><BR>>> ><BR>>> >
=======================================================<BR>>> >
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serving the communities of the Palouse since 1994.<BR>>>
>
<A href="http://www.fsr.net">http://www.fsr.net</A><BR>>>
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href="mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com">mailto:Vision2020@moscow.com</A><BR>>>
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