Publications & Testimony

Anthony Caravello was convicted of rape and murder for a crime he allegedly committed in 1983 at age 15 in Florida. The prosecution sought the death penalty. Now DNA evidence from the crime scene points to another individual and may result in his exoneration. The state is not contesting his release. Caravello has an IQ of 67 and was convicted largely on the basis of his own statements, which he says were obtained from him after beatings during his interrogation. At his sentencing, the judge…

On September 9, The Bob Edwards Show on Sirius XM Radio interviewed Stephen Bright and Nina Morrison regarding the case of Troy Anthony Davis. Edwards is the award-winning former host of National Public Radio’s “Morning Edition.” The show offered this introduction: “Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court did something it hadn’t done in 50 years – it ordered a stay of execution and court hearing for an inmate to attempt to prove his innocence. Since 1991, Troy Davis has been on death row in Georgia…

A recent article in the Fayetteville Observer in North Carolina captures the poignant story of one man’s life on death row. James Floyd Davis is a Vietnam veteran who lashed out with a burst of violence fourteen years ago, killing three people including his boss who had fired him a few days before. He suffers from mental illness and post-traumatic stress disorder. Through the intervention of a therapist who also served in Vietnam, it was learned that Davis was entitled to a Purple Heart and…

Acclaimed artist Robert Priseman has assembled some of his drawings of execution chambers with essays on the death penalty into a new book entitled “No Human Way to Kill.” The essays include the story of a mother whose daughter was murdered, a death row inmate’s diary, and an interview with Jim Willett, former warden of the prison where Texas executions are held. Death penalty attorney Clive Stafford Smith writes in review, “The etchings and accounts offer up a strange and original…

Former death row inmate Michael Toney was freed from prison in Texas on September 2 after the state’s Attorney General asked that his death sentence and criminal charges be dismissed. Toney was sentenced to death for a fatal bombing in 1985 that occurred at a trailer park in Lake Worth. He has always maintained his innocence, and there was no physical evidence leading to his conviction. His conviction and death sentence were overturned by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals nine months ago…

Recent scientific reports indicating that Texas likely executed an innocent man have spurred wide coverage and commentary. Cameron Todd Willingham was executed in 2004 for the arson murder of his three children. Fire experts now say the blaze was likely an accident. Excerpts from coverage: New York Times Editorial, August 31, 2009, “Questions About an Execution”: People should have no illusions about the brutal injustice of the death penalty after all of the exonerations in recent years from…

Most Californians would support a sentence of life without parole for those convicted of murder rather than the death penalty according to a new opinion poll released on September 1. If the life sentence was combined with a requirement that the inmate work to make restitution to the family of the victim, only 26% of Californians would still opt for the death penalty. The poll was conducted by Prof. Craig Haney of the University of California at Santa Cruz. He conducted a nearly identical poll…

D. Grann, “Trial by Fire: Did Texas Execute an Innocent Man?” The New Yorker, Sept. 7, 2009; Press Release, The Innocence Project, Aug. 31, 2009. W. Sessions, “DNA Evidence and the Death Penalty,” Jurist, May 30, 2007 Maurice Possley and Steve Mills. “Did this man die…for this man’s crime?” The Chicago Tribune. June 25 – 27, 2006. “Forensics Under the Microscope” Chicago Tribune, October 17, 2004 — March 10, 2006 Tom Lowenstein, “Snitch Work,” Philadelphia City Paper, June 17 – 24, 2004. Tom…

Probably the most complete collection of information on executions carried out in the United States from colonial times to the modern era was assembled by Watt Espy of Headland, Alabama. Espy died on August 13, 2009 at age 76, but his files and catalog of executions was preserved and transformed over the years into a searchable database by friends and scholars who appreciated his work. Much of his archive is now located at the State University of New York at Albany. DPIC has information from…