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The Uneven Hand of Justice

By Tennessee Coalition to Abolish State Killing

John Seigenthaler, chairman emeritus of The Tennessean and founder of the Freedom Forum First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University, had a wonderful article in Sunday's Tennessean entitled "The Uneven Hand of Justice" about the Gaile Owens case in Tennessee. Seigenthaler highlights the disparity in Gaile's sentence compared with similar crimes in Tennessee, particularly the case of Mary Winkler who served 67 days in a mental health facility after murdering her abusive husband in 2006. Of all the cases mentioned in the article, Owens' was the only defendant who was willing to plead guilty and take responsibility for her decision. Yet, she is the only one who faces execution. In this case, the judicial process broke down over and over again with the jury never hearing about the abuse Gaile suffered, with her trial attorneys spending only 2 hours preparing for her trial, and with the prosecutor withholding crucial evidence substantiating Gaile's claims of her husband's infidelity...continue to full post

Full post as published by tcask:: on the road (to abolition) on December 21, 2009 (boomark / email).