Friday, November 22, 2013

So much work to do

I was a prosecutor in a case that used race-based testimony to sentence Duane Buck to death. Now, I'm calling for the state of Texas to spare his life and grant him a fair sentence.

 
robin -
In 1997, I was one of the prosecutors in a court case that used race-based testimony to sentence to death Duane Buck, who's black.
At the time, I was an Assistant District Attorney in Harris County, Texas and Mr. Buck was being tried for murder. During the trial, an "expert" witness named Dr. Walter Quijano was permitted to testify that being black increases the likelihood of 'future dangerousness'. That testimony in part led to the jury sentencing Mr. Buck to death.
Three years after Mr. Buck's trial, the Texas Attorney General actually promised that he'd get a new, fair sentencing hearing. This was along with six other men who were sentenced unfairly because of similar testimonies in their own trials. Those six other men have received their hearings, but not Mr. Buck.
I started my petition in the hopes that District Attorney Anderson will act to make sure that our justice system is not tainted by unconstitutional considerations of race -- and that begins by having a new, color-blind sentencing hearing for Duane Buck. Please click here to sign my petition now, calling on District Attorney Mike Anderson to grant Duane Buck a resentencing hearing.
Thank you.
Linda Geffin
Senior Assistant County Attorney
Houston, Texas

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