[Deathpenalty] death penalty news---TEXAS, MASS., GA., FLA., ALA., S. DAK., IDAHO, CALIF.

[Rick Halperin]

April 17


TEXAS:

Northeast Texas man on death row for strangling girlfriend turned down by


The U.S. Supreme Court turned down Daniel Acker's appeal on Monday.

A northeast Texas man convicted of strangling his girlfriend moved one step 
closer to a possible execution date after the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday 
turned down his appeal despite what his lawyer described as a "compelling case 
of actual innocence."

Daniel Acker was sent to death row in 2001 for the slaying of Marquetta George. 
The two were sharing a rented trailer in Hopkins County in March 2000 when they 
got in a fight after a night at the Bustin' Loose nightclub.

Afterward, they parted ways and later Acker went searching for the 32-year-old 
Sulphur Springs woman, according to court filings. Her body was eventually 
found bloodied and beaten on the side of a road, and investigators fingered 
Acker for the killing.

At trial, the defense argued that George jumped out of the couple's truck and 
was hit. Prosecutors said her boyfriend strangled her, then dumped her body.

Acker was sentenced to death and has spent the past 18 years fighting his case, 
at times filing appeals on his own.

The latest appeal, filed by attorney A. Richard Ellis, argued that prosecutors 
used false testimony from experts and repeatedly changed their theory of the 
crime. The case at trial was predicated on the theory that George was strangled 
- and the defense argued that she wasn't, and that an expert for the state 
later admitted it.

Ellis also contended that the trial court of wrongly refused to allow evidence 
that could have shown Acker's innocence.

But this week the nation's highest court without comment turned down the case.

"I am of course very disappointed that the Supreme Court declined to review Mr. 
Acker's compelling case of actual innocence," Ellis said.

"This was a tragic accident, where the victim jumped from Mr. Acker's truck -- 
an accident for which he has taken full responsibility from the time he turned 
himself in to the authorities -- but not a murder," he continued. "Going 
forward, we will be assessing our options to prevent a terrible miscarriage of 
justice."

Acker does not yet have an execution date set.

(source: Houston Chronicle)




MASSACHUSETTS:

Massachusetts lawmaker pushes to reinstate death penalty after cop killing


A police officer on Cape Cod was shot in the head and killed Thursday while 
serving a warrant, local media reported.

A Massachusetts lawmaker is reportedly pushing the state to bring back the 
death penalty in response to the recent killing of a police officer gunned down 
while serving a warrant.

State Rep Shaunna L. O’Connell, a Republican, said the state has a reputation 
of being soft on crime and that puts the public in danger.

“We need to send a message to criminals that ‘you kill law enforcement 
officers, you are going to get the death penalty,” she said, according to 
Fox25Boston.

Yarmouth K-9 Officer Sean Gannon was shot and killed last Thursday while he and 
other officers were serving an arrest warrant at a home in Barnstable on Cape 
Cod.

Gannon, who was married, was an 8-year veteran of the department. Gannon's dog, 
Nero, also was shot but underwent surgery and is recovering.

Thomas Latanowich, 29, was charged in the killing. Latanowich hung his head 
throughout his brief arraignment in Barnstable District Court last week, 
speaking only to answer “yes” when the judge asked if he understood the 
proceedings.

Latanowich has been arrested numerous times, according to police and court 
records, though many of the charges were later dismissed.

Authorities said the last prison time Latanowich served was a 4- to 5-year 
sentence on gun charges. The prosecutor expressed frustration that prior 
charges had not resulted in more lengthy sentences.

Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican, said in a statement that he supports the 
death penalty when a police officer is killed.

(source: Fox News)


*********************


Some crimes merit death penalty


The death penalty would be a fitting end to Thomas Latanowich if he is found 
guilty in the slaying of Yarmouth police officer Sean Gannon. Latanowich has an 
immense criminal record including recent arrests for strangling a pregnant 
woman and stabbing a man at a traffic light.

Unfortunately there is no stomach for capital punishment on Beacon Hill. 
Opponents fear that an innocent man could be executed, and suggest the death 
penalty is not a deterrent to crime.

Our justice system is imperfect and preventing collateral damage in our 
sentencing should always be a concern, but it is absurd to posit that the death 
penalty cannot be deterrent. Who are the respondents of such a survey? How can 
we prove a negative?

Across the country, if the death penalty is ineffective it is because it is 
never implemented properly — with many on death row for decades, long after the 
impact of an execution would resonate in the public.

(source: Editorial, Boston Herald)




GEORGIA:

DA: No death penalty for Gwinnett mom who killed 4 kids, husband


A Gwinnett County woman charged with killing her husband and four children will 
not face the death penalty when her case goes to trial.

Isabel Martinez entered a plea of not guilty to stabbing her 9-year-old 
daughter and killing the five other members of her family at a brief Monday 
morning arraignment. The Gwinnett County District Attorney’s Office had not 
formally declared their intent to seek the death penalty by the time of the 
arraignment. That is the legal deadline to decide whether or not a defendant 
will be eligible for the death penalty.

Martinez, 34, is charged with five counts of murder, one count of aggravated 
assault and one count of third-degree cruelty to children in connection with 
the July 2017 attack that left 9-year-old Diana Romero seriously injured and 
33-year-old Martin Romero, 2-year-old Axel Romero, 4-year-old Dillan Romero, 
7-year-old Dacota Romero and 10-year-old Isabela Martinez all dead.

The DA’s office confirmed the decision not to seek the death penalty to Channel 
2 Action News. The decision was made due to Martinez’s “apparent mental 
issues,” District Attorney Danny Porter told Channel 2.

Martinez had been depressed in  the months before the killings and had 
experienced outbursts of anger and sadness that friends considered unusual, 
neighbors told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Martinez felt a “devil-like 
spirit” was trying to take her children when they were playing in the ocean 
near Savannah shortly before the killings, she told a Department of Family and 
Child Services worker after her arrest.

Court records do not indicate that Martinez has been ordered to undergo a 
psychological evaluation. Her attorneys, Josh Moore and Laura Berg, did not 
respond to phone calls from the AJC.

Martinez, who mimed praying and gave news cameras a double thumbs up at her 
first court hearing in July, smiled meekly as she walked into the courtroom 
Monday morning. She did not speak at the hearing.

Martinez had previously told police that a “family friend” committed the 
stabbings in her Loganville home, but she did not give police the name of that 
alleged friend. The attack is believed to have occurred between 2 a.m. and 4 
a.m. July 7.

Diana Romero, the only surviving child, told a DFCS worker that Martinez began 
stabbing the children first; when Martin Romero tried to stop her, Martinez 
stabbed him, according to a DFCS report. Martinez was not crying or screaming 
as she killed her family members, and told Diana Romero that she was “going to 
the sky to see Jesus,” Diana Romero told a DFCS worker.

Martinez called 911 at 4:47 a.m. on July 6, and first responders found her with 
a cut wrist, sitting among the six stabbing victims, according to Gwinnett 
County police. She was detained and charged that afternoon, and has since been 
held without bond at the Gwinnett County Detention Center.

(source: Atlanta Journal Constitution)





FLORIDA:

Sentencing hearing held for convicted murderer Sanel Saint Simon----Saint Simon 
convicted of murdering 16-year-old Alexandria Chery


A man convicted of killing his girlfriend's teenage daughter in Orange County 
will soon learn whether he will be sentenced to death.

A hearing began Monday for Sanel Saint Simon, who was convicted of murdering 
16-year-old Alexandria Chery in 2014. Her body was found near the Osceola-Polk 
county line.

Attorneys debated for weeks over what jurors will be allowed to hear at the 
sentencing hearing.

Witnesses gave impact statements Monday morning, and Chery's mother said, "For 
four years, all I do is cry. My life has changed forever."

The victim's former boyfriend also testified in court Monday, recalling what he 
said Chery confessed to him before she died.

"I had to keep asking her what was wrong and eventually she told me she was 
being bothered. She told me every time he touched her. It was numerous 
occasions, maybe about 4 times," Damian Thomas said.

The defense claims Saint Simon has good character and urged jurors not to vote 
for the death penalty.

The defense also used video testimony from Haiti that showa interviews with 
Saint Simon's friends and family.

"The question is: Is this case the worst of the worst? And I submit to you that 
it’s not," said Erin Hyde of the public defender's office.

Jurors must determine 1 aggravated factor beyond a reasonable doubt to suggest 
the death penalty.

The hearing is expected to last at least 2 days.

(source: clickorlando.com)




ALABAMA----impending execution

Jeff Sessions: It's OK with feds if Alabama executes judge's killer


U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Monday paved the way for this week's 
execution of death row inmate Walter Leroy Moody for the 1989 pipe bombing that 
killed a federal judge.

Last week Moody asked the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to stay his lethal 
injection execution, which is set for 6 p.m. Thursday at Holman Correctional 
Facility in Atmore. Moody recently argued the federal government which 
convicted him first on non-death penalty charges should have him in custody 
instead of the state.

The appeals court held a hearing Thursday but has not yet ruled.

Justice Department attorneys at that hearing and in written briefs have said 
that they have had an agreement since the 1990s to allow Moody to serve his 
sentence in Alabama. Then on Monday the Justice Department filed another brief 
on behalf of Sessions.

"Before the United States filed its amicus brief in this case and presented its 
position at oral argument, the Attorney General, Jefferson B. Sessions, III, 
informed the undersigned Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Matthew S. Miner, 
that the United States waives its right to exclusive custody of petitioner 
Walter Leroy Moody, Jr. and consents to his custody in Alabama for purposes of 
carrying out the capital sentence imposed on Moody in Alabama," the brief filed 
Monday states.

Walter Leroy Moody Jr., 83, is the oldest inmate on Alabama Death Row.

He was convicted in the death of U.S. 11th Circuit of Appeals Judge Robert 
Vance Sr., who was killed Dec. 16, 1989 in a blast from a pipe bomb hidden in a 
package sent to the judge's Mountain Brook home. The judge's wife, Helen, was 
seriously injured in the blast.

In 1991, a federal jury convicted Moody of 71 charges related to the pipe-bomb 
murders of Vance and Georgia civil rights attorney Robert E. Robinson, who also 
was killed in a pipe-bomb blast 5 days after the judge. That federal trial was 
conducted in Minnesota. Moody was placed on death row after a jury convicted 
him of capital murder at a trial in Alabama 5 years later. The jury recommended 
11-1 that the death penalty be imposed and the judge agreed.

********************


Lawyer to Alabama governor: Judge killed by bomb would oppose death penalty


A lawyer on Monday asked Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey to halt Thursday's execution of 
Alabama death row inmate Walter Leroy Moody and commute the convicted judge 
killer's sentence to life without parole.

Moody's attorney claims in the letter to Ivey that U.S. 11th Circuit Court of 
Appeals Judge Robert Vance Sr. - the man Moody is convicted of killing with a 
pipe bomb in 1989 - did not believe in the death penalty.

"It is crucial that someone in the process consider the wishes of the victim 
for whom the sentence is being carried out," the letter from attorney Spencer 
Hahn states. "As the only person with the power and responsibility to decide 
whether Mr. Moody will be executed or permitted to die a natural death, that 
solemn and important duty is yours."

The letter cites statements made a few of Vance's former law clerks and his 
son.

"Indeed, my father often made decisions with which he personally disagreed. He 
did not believe that the death penalty was a proper form of punishment, and he 
considered death penalty cases to be almost unbearable. During his tenure, 
however, he affirmed a great number of death penalty convictions because thy 
were found to be the result of proper administration of our justice system, and 
he knew that it was not his role to change that system to suit his personal 
preferences," Bob Vance Jr. was quoted in the letter as having said at the 
University of Alabama School of Law a year after his dad's death.

Bob Vance Jr. is now a circuit judge in Jefferson County and is running this 
year for chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court. He recently echoed that 
same statement in an interview with AL.com.

His father handled a few death row cases, including one involving infamous 
serial killer Ted Bundy in Florida. "And he really struggled with death penalty 
cases because personally he was against the death penalty ... but he had to put 
aside his personal beliefs as a judge" and follow the law, the younger Vance 
said.

In Monday's letter Hahn asked Ivey to invoke her power of clemency.

"Just as Judge Vance recognized the limitations of his power, as a federal 
judge, to end the death penalty, you should recognize and exercise the power 
entrusted to you, pursuant to the Alabama Constitution, to commute Mr. Moody's 
death sentence to one of life without parole. I urge you to honor Judge Vance 
by exercising your constitutional authority and respecting his wishes," the 
letter to Ivey states.

U.S. 11th Circuit of Appeals Judge Robert Vance Sr. was killed Dec. 16, 1989 in 
a blast from a pipe bomb hidden in a package sent to the judge's Mountain 
Brook, Ala., home.

Walter Leroy Moody Jr., 83, is the oldest inmate on Alabama death row.

He was convicted in the death of U.S. 11th Circuit of Appeals Judge Robert 
Vance Sr., who was killed Dec. 16, 1989 in a blast from a pipe bomb hidden in a 
package sent to the judge's Mountain Brook home. The judge's wife, Helen, was 
seriously injured in the blast.

In 1991, a federal jury convicted Moody of 71 charges related to the pipe-bomb 
murders of Vance and Georgia civil rights attorney Robert E. Robinson, who also 
was killed in a pipe-bomb blast 2 days after the judge. That federal trial was 
conducted in Minnesota. Moody was placed on death row after a jury convicted 
him of capital murder at a trial in Alabama 5 years later. The jury recommended 
11-1 that the death penalty be imposed and the judge agreed.

(source for both: al.com)




SOUTH DAKOTA:

State Withdraws Death Penalty Possibility in Slaying Case


A Sturgis man accused of hiring others to kill his girlfriend will not face the 
possibility of the death penalty if convicted.

Jonathon Klinetobe has pleaded not guilty to multiple felonies including 
first-degree murder in the May 2015 stabbing death of 22-year-old Jessica 
Rehfeld. Her body was found in a remote grave near Rockerville a year later.

Prosecutors last year said they planned to seek the death penalty against 
Klinetobe should he be convicted. They announced during a Monday court hearing 
that they're withdrawing that prospect.

The decision was made at the request of Rehfeld's family, who said the death 
penalty could drag out the case for years and keep the family from recovering 
Rehfeld's personal belongings kept as police evidence.

Klinetobe now will face a life sentence if convicted.

(source: Associated Press)




COLORADO:

Death penalty considered for two suspects in Coronado High students' slayings


Prosecutors are considering whether to pursue the death penalty against 2 
Colorado Springs men accused of pulling the trigger during the executions of a 
pair of Coronado high school students shot at close range over a gang rivalry.

Prosecutor Jim Bentley said the District Attorney's Office hasn't ruled out 
death penalty bids against first-degree murder suspects Diego Chacon, 19, and 
Marco Garcia-Bravo, 22.

Bentley made his announcement after defense attorneys requested a postponement 
in court, saying he could use more time for "continuing due diligence regarding 
the penalty phase."

Fourth Judicial District Judge Larry E. Schwartz agreed to postpone the men's 
arraignments until May 7. If the men plead not guilty, prosecutors would have 
63 days to file notice of a capital case under Colorado law. Bentley did not 
comment further about ongoing deliberations.

Garcia-Bravo and Chacon are among 10 people charged in a conspiracy that 
culminated in the March 2017 abductions and shootings of Derek Greer, 15, and 
Natalie Cano-Partida, 16. Authorities say Cano-Partida was marked for death 
because she was suspected of furnishing information to the defendants' gang 
rivals. Greer was killed for being with her, they say.

Their deaths came on the side of Old Pueblo Road near the Pikes Peak 
International Raceway outside of Fountain. After a harrowing drive with their 
captors, the high school students were forced at gunpoint into "execution 
position," an investigator said in an arrest affidavit detailing the crime.

A co-defendant, Gustavo Marquez, told investigators that Chacon, armed with a 
pistol, fired 2 shots at Cano-Partida, possibly while her hands were on her 
head.

Chacon then handed the gun to Garcia-Bravo, who fired on Greer a moment later, 
causing the teen to topple forward with his hands still in his sweatshirt 
pockets.

"Mr. Marquez said Mr. Garcia-Bravo fired multiple shots to include shooting 
after he fell to the ground," an investigator wrote in an arrest affidavit.

The potential for a death penalty bid comes as El Paso County is in the midst 
of its 1st death penalty case in a decade - that of Glen Law Galloway, who is 
charged in a double killing that targeted a homeless man and a woman Galloway 
had been convicted of stalking.

That case has been tied up in jury selection for more than a month and is 
expected to begin with opening statements in mid-May, in a courtroom that 
received $50,000 for audio-visual upgrades and a jury box enlargement in order 
to host the monthslong trial.

In the teens' slayings, 5 people were charged with 1st-degree murder. Monday's 
announcement comes days after prosecutors cut plea deals for 2 of them - 
contingent on their agreement to testify.

Joseph Rodriguez Jr., 19, pleaded guilty to 2 counts of 2nd-degree kidnapping, 
making him eligible for 16 to 32 years in prison. Gustavo Antonio Marquez, 20, 
pleaded guilty to 2 counts of 2nd-degree murder, with a potential prison 
sentence of 32 to 38 years.

Alexandra Romero, 22, also charged with first-degree murder, will be arraigned 
April 30.

(source: Colorado Springs Gazette)





IDAHO:

Ohlson murder trial delayed one year


The murder trial of Erik Ohlson has been re-scheduled to 2019.

Ohlson is accused in the July 2016 shooting death of Jennifer Nalley, 39, and 
her unborn child near Driggs.

In a hearing Friday, Judge Bruce Pickett addressed defense concerns about the 
extent of evidence reviewed in Ohlson's original preliminary hearing. As a 
result, Teton County Prosecutor Billie Siddoway said the judge re-set the 
preliminary hearing for May 4 before Magistrate Judge Keith Walker. That 
hearing will set limits on which evidence Judge Walker may consider.

Siddoway said she did not expect the magistrate court hearing to affect the new 
trial date.

Defense attorneys also requested adequate additional time to prepare for trial. 
In response, Ohlson's murder trial was re-scheduled for June 3, 2019.

It was previously determined that the trial would be held in Blackfoot after 
defense lawyers argued Ohlson could not find an unbiased jury in Teton County. 
Siddoway stated last year she intended to seek the death penalty in the case.

Ohlson is currently charged with 2 counts of felony 1st degree murder and a 
variety of lesser crimes connected to them, including alcohol violations, 
burglary and use of a deadly weapon in commission of a felony.

(source: KIFI news)




CALIFORNIA:

Kevin Cooper Fights for His Innocence From San Quentin's Death Row


Not everyone on death row is guilty. According to the Registry of 
Exonerations—maintained at the University of California at Irvine Law School, 
where constitutional scholar Erwin Chemerinsky was the former dean—on average 4 
percent of men on death row across the United States are innocent.

Kevin Cooper may be one of them.

Cooper, a 60-year-old African-American man, is a death row inmate at 
California’s San Quentin Prison. In 1985, he was convicted of a 1983 quadruple 
murder and sentenced to death for the gruesome murders of a white family in 
Chino Hills, Calif.: Doug and Peggy Ryen, their 10-year-old daughter, Jessica, 
and her 11-year-old friend Christopher Hughes. The Ryens’ 8-year-old son, Josh, 
survived the attack.

At Cooper’s trial, evidence that might have exonerated him was withheld from 
the defense. Since his conviction, Cooper has become active in writing from 
prison to assert his innocence, protest racism in the American criminal justice 
system, and oppose the death penalty. His case was scrutinized in a June 17, 
2017, New York Times column by Nicholas Kristof.

The state of California intends to execute Cooper when it resumes executions in 
the coming months.

Cooper’s case is not just another case of a death row inmate claiming his 
innocence. Many legal experts and longtime human rights advocates say it is the 
most well-documented and well-supported matter of wrongful conviction they have 
ever seen. Having exhausted his appeals in the U.S. courts, Cooper’s lawyers 
want to raise public awareness to seek remedy for what they maintain is his 
wrongful conviction, and the inadequate trial representation, prosecutorial 
misconduct and racial discrimination which have marked the case.

Here are some facts about Kevin Cooper and his case.

In 2009, referring to Cooper’s case, five federal judges of the 9th Circuit 
Court of Appeals signed a dissenting opinion that begins: “The State of 
California may be about to execute an innocent man.” Six additional 9th Circuit 
judges have joined in the dissent, saying Cooper never has had a fair hearing 
to prove his innocence.

Read the unprecedented dissent by five federal judges below.

In February 2016, legal counsel for Cooper sent the following clemency petition 
to California Gov. Jerry Brown.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights is a principal and autonomous 
body of the Organization of American States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., 
IACHR’s mission is to promote, protect and examine allegations of human rights 
violations in the American hemisphere.

On April 29, 2011, Cooper filed a petition with the IACHR alleging human rights 
violations in his prosecution, trial, sentencing and appeals. On Aug. 23, 2011, 
after reviewing the petition, the IACHR issued a letter to the United States 
that requested “precautionary measures” such that Cooper not be executed while 
the IACHR undertook its investigation of Cooper’s petition. The United States 
ignored the IACHR’s letter. Cooper’s attorneys then presented extensive 
evidence to the IACHR and briefing as to how Cooper’s human rights had been 
violated.

On Oct. 28, 2013, the IACHR convened a hearing on Cooper’s petition. Cooper 
appeared by a pre-recorded statement, and his attorneys presented their 
arguments on how Cooper’s human rights had been infringed. Representing the 
United States were attorneys from the U.S. State Department. After the hearing, 
the United States requested time to file a brief in opposition to the the 
evidence in Cooper’s petition and presented at the hearing. After the United 
States filed its opposition brief, Cooper filed a reply pointing out 
inaccuracies in the United States’ presentation.

In September 2015, the IACHR released its report on its findings with respect 
to Cooper’s clemency petition. That report found eight separate due process 
violations in Cooper’s prosecution, trial and sentencing. It also found that 
Cooper’s trial counsel had been ineffective and cited evidence that there had 
been racial bias in the proceedings that led to Cooper’s conviction and 
sentence. The report concluded with a list of recommendations for granting 
Kevin Cooper effective relief, including a review of his trial and sentence in 
accordance with the guarantees of due process of law.

As the report states:

     In evaluating the information on the record, the Inter-American Commission 
concludes that the manner in which certain evidence pertinent to the basis for 
Mr. Cooper’s capital conviction was treated in the course of his criminal 
proceedings and the ineffective defense provided by a court-appointed counsel, 
failed to meet the rigorous standard of due process applicable in capital cases 
and amounted to a denial of justice contrary to the fair trial and due process 
standards.

Reach the full IACHR final report from September 2015 below.

Many people have written letters to Gov. Brown to voice their support for 
Cooper’s request for clemency and urge Brown to use the powers of his office to 
conduct a full and fair investigation into Cooper’s case.

Bryan Stevenson, executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative, wrote in 
August 2016:

     Based on my decades of experience representing condemned prisoners, Mr. 
Cooper’s case presents exactly the situation for which clemency is intended—to 
avoid the ultimate injustice of executing an innocent person whom the criminal 
justice system has failed. … I have represented scores of condemned men and 
women, all of whom are poor and who are disproportionately people of color. We 
now know that for every nine persons executed in the United States, one 
innocent person is exonerated and released from death row. This error rate in 
our capital system is unacceptable, yet it continues because so many people on 
death row were subjected to racial bias and did not have the means to defend 
themselves.

Read Stevenson’s full letter from the Equal Justice Initiative below.

In August 2016, the Innocence Project wrote:

     Since 1973, American courts have released [161] death row inmates from 
prison after a finding of innocence. A recent study determined that, 
conservatively, 4.1% of all death row inmates in the United States are likely 
innocent.

Read the full letter from the Innocence Project below.

In May 2017, Sister Helen Prejean wrote:

     This brings me to the case of Kevin Cooper, which is currently before you 
on his Petition for Executive Clemency. The law enforcement abuses and other 
misconduct by the San Bernardino sheriff’s department and prosecutors in the 
’80’s and 90’s and mishandling of evidence subject to DNA testing in the early 
2000s as well as the actions of a Republican appointed District Court Judge in 
San Diego that prevented Mr. Cooper from a fair opportunity to prove his 
innocence, are well set forth in detail in the Petition, the May, 2009 opinion 
of 9th Circuit Judge William Fletcher and the book “Scapegoat: The Chino Hills 
Murders and the Framing of Kevin Cooper” by J. Patrick O’Connor and articles 
and news videos by several others who have reviewed and studied the case.

     These organizations and individuals include the most prominent and well 
respected civil rights and human rights observers, commentators and 
participants, both nationally and internationally. I join them, most of whom 
have written personally to you regarding Kevin Cooper’s wrongful conviction.

Read the full letter from Sr. Prejean below.

Cooper’s clemency petition 30 years after the slaying in Chino Hills continues 
has stirred many emotions. His last hope of avoiding execution is up to Gov. 
Brown. If evidence exists that could prove Cooper’s innocence, an investigation 
with current forensic testing methods should be conducted. Cooper is not asking 
for his release. All he wants is a fair hearing on his claims of innocence.

For more information about Kevin Cooper and his case, visit 
savekevincooper.org. To read Cooper’s writing on Truthdig, click here.

If you want to get involved, here are some actions you can take.

Sign Amnesty Internationals’ petition to commute Kevin Cooper’s death sentence.

Share information about Kevin Cooper’s case with your neighbors, coworkers, 
friends and family.

Join the Kevin Cooper Defense Committee, and help them plan events and actions.

Write letters to the editor of your local newspaper about this injustice.

Invite the Defense Committee to present Cooper’s case to your house of worship, 
school, community group.

Contact the Kevin Cooper Defense Committee at info at freekevincooper.org to learn 
more or discuss other ways to help.

(source:  truthdig.org)