Publications & Testimony

Although the number of executions in Ohio in the past two years is second only to those in Texas, there is considerable support in Ohio for a review of the entire system. Two former prison directors, Reginald Wilkinson and Terry Collins, agree that death row cases should be reviewed to decide whether they are the “worst of the worst.” Wilkinson (pictured), who was director from 1991 to 2006 and witnessed many executions, would take it even further: “I’m of the opinion that we should eliminate…

Ohio Governor Ted Strickland and Attorney General Richard Cordray recently urged prosecutors in seven criminal cases to allow DNA testing that could either prove innocence or confirm the defendant’s guilt. The seven cases include one man currently on death row, Tyrone Noling, two inmates serving long sentences, three men who are no longer in prison but want to clear their names, and a man who died in prison in 2006. Gov. Strickland said, “I really think it’s irrational not to take advantage of…

Prominent leaders in Ohio are calling for a comprehensive review of the state’s death penalty system, particularly as an execution nears for a man whose guilt is being seriously questioned. Kevin Keith (pictured) has been on Ohio’s death row for over 15 years and has an execution date of September 15. But new evidence has arisen about the unreliability of those who originally testified against him. Ohio’s governor, Ted Strickland, recently said Keith’s case, “has circumstances that I find…

A recent editorial in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram raised questions about Texas’ entire death penalty system, given the preliminary finding by the Texas Forensic Science Commission that arson experts relied on outdated and flawed science during their investigation of a death penalty case. Cameron Willingham was executed in 2004 for setting a fire that killed his three daughters in 1991 based on this faulty research. Now it appears that the fire may not have been deliberate at all. The…

Cory Maples, an inmate on Alabama’s death row, may pay for a simple clerical error with his life. When copies of an Alabama court ruling in his case were sent to the New York law firm handling his appeals, both copies were returned unopened because the firm’s attorneys representing Maples had left the firm. By the time the error was discovered, Maples’s time to appeal had expired. So far, the firm has failed to persuade a federal appeals court to waive the deadline for filing an appeal.

A new book by Andrew Hammel offers insights into the different perspectives on the death penalty in America and Europe. “Ending the Death Penalty: The European Experience in Global Perspective” examines three countries that do not have the death penalty (Germany, France and the United Kingdom), and analyzes how capital punishment was ended in those countries. Hammel ultimately believes that the governmental structure, culture, and political traditions in the U.S. make the European model of…

A new book written by Jim and Nancy Petro offers a comprehensive analysis of how miscarriages of justice result in wrongful convictions. Jim Petro, a former Republican Attorney General of Ohio, has observed the justice system from all sides and was appalled by the frequent mistakes in the criminal justice system. As attorney general, he advocated along with the Innocence Project to help free a man wrongfully convicted of murder and rape. In “False Justice,” the Petros expose a series of myths…