Arkansas Blog

Pathetic, bidness as usual, same-old, same-old conformist claptrap.

Reading Mara's book on this scared the hell out of me. It made me more certain that a fear of law enforcement is a completely rational thought. It scares me even more that even with all the evidence, the powers that be simply churn out crap like this press release.

I'm also excited about the ABA's request to halt executions nationwide pending a review of the process. How many more innocent people will die at the hands of our "justice" system? I know victim's rights folk will jump all over this and say, "What about the victim?" The victim should be protected; their rights respected above all. However, locking an innocent person up and possibly taking their life creates a whole new family of victims who neither trust nor respect the "justice" system. It is certainly not justifiable to lock people up for crimes they did not commit in order to please an incensed public.

What else would anyone excpect the AG to say? Good lord, Max, you're trying hard to make something out of nothing on this statement.

The statement is definitely "something", Pig. The Attorney General should be talking like a public servant, instead of displaying his prejudice in the case. What he said amounts to "They can present all the evidence they want. We'll look at it if we can find the time, but our mind is already made up."

GREAT "people's" translation, WIDJ!!!

Widj, you understand that it's the AG's job to represent the prosecution's interest, don't you? That's why it's a nonstory. He is speaking on behalf of the public by virtue of the fact that the state of Arkansas prosecuted these three men.

ARK. BLOG: Right and I think you're mighty sensitive. McDaniel still wants Echols to die,does he not, which is all that I said. (However, he could have edited that statement just a tiny bit to have delivered the same message without seeming to be dismissive of the new argument.)

I agree with Pig. The AG's role is defend this habeas action. The AG should not expect a reversal. As an attorney, you can't go in expecting to lose (or at least you can't say so publicly). I didn't read McDaniel's comments as dismissive.

ARK. BLOG: I don't think the a.g.'s duty is to blindly defend all habeas actions regardless of merit. I don't expect him here, to roll over and say "you got me." I expect him to say he'll carefully review the evidence and respond when he's done so. To say he expects the conviction to stand is to say he need not read the evidence to reach that conclusion. That's been characteristic of NE Ark. justice in this case from the first.

"He is speaking on behalf of the public by virtue of the fact that the state of Arkansas prosecuted these three men."

Then, the State of Arkansas is a ass. That was an outrageous thing to say.

The AG needs to understand that if the state puts an innocent man to death, he and the rest of the machine are guilty of murder -- cop, judge, jury, and especially the prosecuting attorney.

I think when DNA evidence clears someone in prison, those who put him there ought to be made to serve the same amount of time.

Max, I'm being no more sensitive than you are being sensationalistic.

Iread nothing in that statement that is out of line for an AG to say in his position.

ARK. BLOG: No sensation, just fact. His statement says he's judged the merit of the filing without reading it.