Litigation

Special Prosecutors Ask Punishment for Judge Keller

By Peter Hardin

The Texas judge charged with misconduct in her handling of a last-minute death row appeal ought to be punished, special prosecutors in the judge’s case have told the State Commission on Judicial Conduct.

The panel ought to ignore the recommendation of a special master in the case who found that Texas Judge Sharon Keller deserves no punishment past the public humiliation she already has experienced, the special prosecutors contended, according to an Associated Press article.

“Judge Keller’s unapologetic defense, and her adamant testimony that she would no nothing different if presented again with the same circumstances, is a total failure in any acceptance of accountability,” special prosecutors’ report stated.

?Citizens’ respect for the death penalty is premised on a deep faith and trust that procedures will be so carefully administered as to prevent erroneous or premature executions,? the report said, according to an article in the Houston Chronicle.

The death row inmate involved in the case was executed Sept. 25, 2007, after Judge Keller refused to keep her courthouse doors open. Her critics have branded her “Sharon Killer,” and she has stayed on the bench; it is unclear when the 13-member commission will meet and make a decision in her case.

The special master wrote that her conduct ?was not exemplary,?  and he called it ?highly questionable,? but said Judge Keller ?did not engage in conduct so egregious that she should be removed from office.?

She presides over the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. You can learn more about her case from Gavel Grab.

Full post as published by The Gavel on February 18, 2010 (boomark / email).