The Innocence Project of Texas

According to Rose Rhoton, sister of a potentially innocent man executed by the State of Texas, “when it comes to capital punishment, Texas is guilty of failing to protect the innocent.” She writes in the Austin American-Statesman today that:

Unfortunately, [her] brother’s story is not unique. Far from it. The well-documented problems in his case are unacceptably common. The nature of eyewitness identification, for instance, is often flawed. It plays a role in 75 percent of all DNA exonerations nationwide.

Faulty eyewitness identification was a contributing factor in another well-documented case of the execution of an innocent person in Texas. Ruben Cantu was a teenager from San Antonio at the time of the crime for which he was wrongfully convicted. He was convicted by a single eyewitness who has since recanted his testimony, saying he only identified Ruben under tremendous pressure from police. Despite his protestations of innocence, Ruben was executed in 2003. The judge, prosecutor, head juror and defense attorney involved in the case now acknowledge that Ruben’s conviction and ultimate execution were a grave mistake.

In another case, Cameron “Todd” Willingham was sentenced to death on the basis of faulty science after being convicted of setting a fire that killed his three daughters. Supposed expert testimony was used at trial to establish that the fire was arson. He was convicted and put to death in 2004. Four of the nation’s top fire experts have since come forward and said that his conviction was based on scientifically invalid evidence.

To read more about Rhoton’s perception of the intersection between the death penalty and actual innocence, click here.

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