Willingham, Innocent & Poor

H/t to G.D. at Postbourgie for inspiring me to sit down with the chilling report on the wrongful execution in Texas of an almost certainly innocent man, Cameron Todd Willingham.  The investigation and findings pointing to his innocence, and the likelihood that TX may become the first state in the nation to admit to killing an innocent human being, has been extensively covered in the media and on the blogs - including by Matt at our Criminal Justice blog. (Matt's also got an excellent follow-up post about the declining role of the media as a watchdog.)

I highly recommend reading the original New Yorker article if you have a moment this long weekend.  Like so many wrongfully convicted, Willingham was poor.  At the intersection of poverty and criminal injustice, we need to work to stop the death penalty and improve legal counsel for the indigent.

Willingham was executed in large part due to shoddy representation by his court-appointed lawyers.  Yep, Willingham was too poor to afford his own counsel, and the lawyers charged to represent him never believed he was innocent.  The Innocence Project, which works to overturn wrongful convictions, classifies "bad lawyering" as one of the main causes of wrongful convictions, adding "The resources of the justice system are often stacked against poor defendants."

Willingham's wife was at The Salvation Army getting their three young daughters a Christmas present when the fire caught, likely from faulty wiring or a space heater in their poorly insulated home in Northeast Texas.  For years she maintained his innocence, even after she divorced him.  But "most indigent inmates, like Willingham, who constitute the bulk of those on death row, lack the resources to track down new witnesses or dig up fresh evidence. They must depend on court-appointed lawyers, many of whom are 'unqualified, irresponsible, or overburdened,' as a study by the Texas Defender Service, a nonprofit organization, put it."

Diane wrote this morning about how more and more American households are unable to afford proper arrangements after a loved one dies and are turning to the state for funeral and burial assistance.  We've written previously how the poor have their legal needs fulfilled less than 20% of the time.  But rather than fall onto the fainting couch in despair, consider joining the growing movement to halt the death penalty and fight for equitable, accessible resources for the poor in the criminal justice system.  The Innocence Project lists 10 things you can do to stop wrongful convictions.  The Sentencing Project lists different actions that need your support.  And legal aid societies around the U.S. continually need financial and volunteer assistance.

Fighting for criminal justice reform is fighting poverty.  Take Action Today.  People's lives depend on it.

(Photo by upturnedface)