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The Life Penalty

By standdown

That's the title of John Moritz' examination of the impact of the life without parole sentencing option in capital cases in the current Texas Observer.  LINK  Here's an extended excerpt from the beginning of this must-read article:Juan Leonardo Quintero was on the expressway to Texas death row. Prosecutors had the 34-year-old on video confessing to gunning down a police officer who had just handcuffed him and sat him in the backseat of his patrol car on September 21, 2006. Despite having his hands cuffed behind his back, Quintero had managed to get a grip on a pistol that 40-year-old police officer Rodney Johnson had overlooked during the pre-arrest pat-down. He shot Johnson four times in the back of the head while the 12-year police veteran and father of five was filling out the routine paperwork before taking his suspect downtown...continue to full post

Full post as published by StandDown Texas Project on December 01, 2008 (boomark / email).