Uncensored, December 02, 2005
Well, it has been a while since I wrote an article. Suzanne was MIA for a short period due to an accident in the family. So I capitalized off of her absence in order to get my thoughts together some more.
Of course the murder machine did not slow down any. I believe the last execution I wrote about was Ron Howard. Several more have taken place. I did not know any of those executed.
To be honest, I never even seen any of them before!
Well, no, I did see one before, Shannon Thomas. Hell, I never even heard of the others. Just goes to show how isolated we really are!
I have been on every pod on the row. There are people here who have been Level 1 since death row moved to this Unit and they haven’t been on more then 3 different pods. (There are 6 pods A-F).
Several more executions are scheduled into the New Year. One of which is Jaime Elizalde. He is the first guy I met here. He was in the cell next to me. We spent a lot of time talking. Through time and conversation, my respect for him grew.
While looking at his name on the “Pending Execution” roster, I started to think back to my first day here and all that has happened in the past 32 months I have been here.
Damn, it has been that long?! Almost three years. It has been a roller coaster ride, that is for sure.
On November 2nd, 2004, Deon Tumblin, my neighbor, hung himself. On February 4, I believe, Christopher Britton hung himself. Both on E Pod. One in 58 cell, the other in 59 cell. You want to know something else that is crazy? Another guy killed himself in 60 cell! But they brought him back to life. He had flat lined though, meaning he was officially dead, but they were able to bring him back. 58, 59 and 60 cell are all right beside each other! All were on Level 2.
E Pod now houses death row level 2 and level 3. F Pod is now for Administrative Segregation of General Population inmates (non-death row).
Well, here it is a year later, I am on Level 2 on E Pod. On November 2, 2005, I was on Level 3. I got woke up because of an officer yelling out “where’s Britton?” I sat up in my bunk and said “who did you just say?” He replied “Chad Britton, where is he at?”
My response “Hell if I know, but if you are gonna find him, you’re gonna need a shovel. The dude killed himself! He killed himself in February of this year, over in 59 cell!”
The officer said “well, he has a letter right here and it has 59 cell on it.” He showed me the letter in his hand. I just said, “That’s a damn shame!”
Now think about this. He killed himself 9 months prior and they still sent a letter to the cell he killed himself in! Well at least we know the mailroom is passing out all the mail!
What freaked me out was that this happened on Nov. 2, exactly on year from when Deon Tumblin killed himself. I just thought that was kind of weird.
Anyway, I am sitting here looking at the “Offenders No Longer on Death Row” list. It was printed out May of 2004, so it is an old list. You can see it at the TDCJ site at http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/. You can also see “Final Statements” of executed offenders. It is under the title “Executed Offenders”.
Well, going over the list of those no longer on Death Row, 77 people on the list I have got off death row by winning their appeal in showing they were wrongfully convicted of Capital Murder. 15 of those 77 won acquittals on new trials and/or charges altogether were dismissed. So by May of 2004, 15 innocent men had been released from the clutches of death! 15 innocent men put away to die for crimes they did not commit. How many didn’t get away?
Really all 77 were innocent of Capital Murder! Murder and Capital Murder are different. Murder only carries 5 years to 99 years or a life sentence with parole eligibility after 40 years. So all 77 were wrongfully sentenced to die. 77 is a lot of people since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. Only 3 states have killed more then Texas 355 ! So Texas has released more innocent men from death row, then other states have killed in 30 years!
Hell, some states entire death row population is in the single digits. This brings me to an article that was in the Houston Chronicle (newspaper for Houston, TX) recently. Everyone please go to http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/3474407.html and you will see the story titled “CANTU CASE: DEATH AND DOUBT Executed man’s co-defendant says years of guilt have led him to try to clear his friend’s name”. It is an article about an innocent man who was killed by the State of Texas. Even on of the victims states that Ruben Cantu was not even at the crime scene. A guy who was there and one of the victims said he was innocent.
So one comes to light. How many others are still in the dark? Cameron Willingham, Gary Graham, so on and so on. This really has an emotional impact on me. Seeing how I am currently in a battle to show that I did not kill anyone, was wrongfully convicted and did not receive a fair trial.
Some more good news has come to light in my case. My trial attorney gave an Affidavit (sworn statement) that he made an error in my trial. Now the error that the statement applies to is he didn’t object to the prosecutor’s unethical tactic and prejudicial act during trial. The prosecutor was waving a book with the title “Serial Killer” in big bold red letters, in front of the jury. There were two victims in the case. So the prosecutor waving that book in front of them wash is way of saying “Hey, you all need to convict and kill him because he’s a serial killer!” This book was waved in front of the jury during both portions of my trial. But that didn’t hold up, as it didn’t make sense nor apply to the case.
Ted Bundy is a serial killer!
Anyway, this statement reflects a BIGGER picture, the unprofessional tactics used by the prosecutors, to do whatever needs to be done to get a conviction and death sentence. It also shows the mistakes made by my trial lawyers.
Don’t get me wrong, I personally liked both of my trial lawyers! I still do. They are only human, thus prone to error. I still write to one of my trial lawyers off and on.
The prosecutors misconduct was all calculated and intentional. As they wanted the conviction and death sentence. The Affidavit I mentioned will be placed on the legal defense organization, SAIL, website at http://www.saveaninnocentlife.com.
Well onto other issues. I would like to get into something that was brought to my attention. I often ask people around here to ask their friends and pen pals what they think about these articles. I as well ask my own friends and supporters. I have had about three or four tell me that these articles seem to be all about me. I re-read a lot of the articles. I don’t see it like that. Then again, I know my reasons. I write about my life on death row in Texas. How can I write about what the next man is going through? That is not possible! I write about the errors of my case. If I write about other’s cases, then the prosecutor could try to use my words against them. How whould that look?
Plus it is disrespectful for me to discuss someone’s case and/or life without their permission! If someone is willing to write about it, I encourage them to write an article, so long as it is done with honesty and integrity. A lot of people will not write or talk about their case. Some out of paranoia that someone might use their words against them. Others because their lawyers instructed them not to. Then there is a few that will, but I don’t feel confident that they will be honest. So I don’t ask them to.
It is easy to focus on myself. As I do live in a single man cell, by myself, for 23 hours a day. I do have to take a shower alone. I do have to go to recreation alone. So 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, I am physically alone I can talk to others, but while in my cell, I can’t even see them! Only when a person goes to the dayroom can they see every cell on the section.
We are so isolated that I have been on every pod in the almost 3 years I have been here, yet, I still have never even seen or hear of a majority of those executed this year or waiting to be executed! The only ones I have actually met who have been executed this year is James Porter, Alex Martinez, Lonnie Pursley, Richard Cartwright, Ron Howard and Robert Shields at visitation.
I did a documentary with Ron Howard which is how I met him. I can’t remember if I knew anyone else executed this year. I have only met one of the people scheduled to die and that is Jaime Elizalde. When I say we are isolated, I mean we are isolated!
I do have a few others lined out to post an article or two in the future.
Well, onto the rest of the story. 1,000! That is the number of people executed in the United States of America. Home of the Free. A land of liberty. A land of liberty with over 2 million people locked up! 18% of which are serving life sentences! That doesn’t include the ones with “year titled” sentences such as 99 years or 150 years and so forth.
1,000 people executed in 29 years. That is like an average of one execution every 10 days. 355 of them swiftly slaughtered by Texas.
1,000 people killed! 38 states have the death penalty. Texas has over a third of the total amount of people killed. On the list of offenders no longer on Death Row, that I have for Texas, 77 has been released from Death Row for being completely innocent, to being innocent of Capital Murder. With those numbers and the Ruben Cantu case, I am willing to say that most likely at least 10 to 15 innocent meant have been killed. No telling how many were killed that should not have been charged with Capital Murder! That is why the death penalty needs to end. Which it doesn’t appear that it will end anytime soon.
1,000 just doesn’t seem enough to some politicians. Especially Senator Jon Kyl, R-Arizona and Rep. Dan Lundgren, R-California, whom are the original sponsors of the streamlined Procedures Act of 2005 which can be read at http://www.uscourts.gov/rules/legislation109.pdf.
If the bill would have went into affect as it was first introduced, the US would have hit 2,000 executed in a quarter of the time it took to hit 1,000. Plus it would have greatly harmed non-death penalty cases. It would have all but totally stripped the Federal Appeals Process.
Some changes have been made to it. About the same as painting a rabid pit bulls toe nails pink, to make it look pretty!
When the Federal Judges themselves complain about the bill, which affects their courts, you know it isn’t anything nice.
More and more cases are coming to light that have shown wrongful prosecution and execution. 2 or 3 times a month, I see in the newspaper about someone getting released from prison, because of new evidence and/or DNA evidence finally tested that showed a person was innocent. Yet they are trying harder and harder to kill us faster and make it harder for a person to prove they are innocent.
It goes to show that the government does not care about its citizens. It only cares about its money.
Several changes have been made, since the early 90’s to speed up the death penalty, to so call “save” tax payers money. Yet have taxes went down?
More Pending
Clinton Young
#999447
Polunsky Unit
3872 FM 350 S.
Livingston, TX 77351