Texas executed an innocent man

This, Stephen Harper, is why Canada MUST seek clemency in all death penalty cases involving Canadian citizens. Because even in so-called democratic countries, they get it wrong. Because innocent people can be put to death. Because you don't get any do-overs. And because capital punishment is just plain wrong.

Chicago Tribune:

In a withering critique, a nationally known fire scientist has told a state commission on forensics that Texas fire investigators had no basis to rule a deadly house fire was an arson -- a finding that led to the murder conviction and execution of Cameron Todd Willingham.

The finding comes in the first state-sanctioned review of an execution in Texas, home to the country's busiest death chamber. If the commission reaches the same conclusion, it could lead to the first-ever declaration by an official state body that an inmate was wrongly executed.

Indeed, the report concludes there was no evidence to determine that the December 1991 fire was even set, and it leaves open the possibility the blaze that killed three children was an accident and there was no crime at all -- the same findings found in a Chicago Tribune investigation of the case published in December 2004.

Willingham, the father of those children, was executed in February 2004. He protested his innocence to the end.

Daily Kos:

Those smiles belong to Amber Willingham and her father, Cameron Todd Willingham.

Both of them were killed because of an accidental fire. Amber and her two sisters died in the blaze. Cameron was wrongfully executed by the state of Texas for setting it.

Today, Texas took the first big step in admitting it murdered an innocent man in its death chamber. And the implications are huge.

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Will you live or die overseas? The Harper Conservatives release a handy guide

An article in Le Devoir points the way to a new Web page the Harper Conservatives launched Tuesday through the Foreign Affairs site for Canadians traveling abroad, with advice for Canadians imprisioned abroad and information on the clemency process for Canadians sentenced to death in foreign countries.

With capital punishment having been abolished in Canada, it has long been the policy of Canadian governments of either major political party to seek clemency for our citizens sentenced to death abroad as a matter of course.

Until, that is, the Harper Reformatories came to town. Under Harper, without debate, the death penalty is back for Canadians abroad, because The Harper Government won't fight for you. Well, let me rephrase. They may or may not fight for you. It depends on whether or not you fit their demographic profile, are part of a group they want to woo, or you're what they'd define as a "real Canadian."

This selective implementation of clemency, this "maybe we'll help you, maybe we'll let you die" policy of the Harper Conservatives has rightly been pilloried by the courts, who have routinely had to step in to get this government to remember its primary duty: stand up for ALL Canadians. The court ruling against the government policy (under appeal) vis a vis the Roland Smith case, and its rejection of the UN's clemency position, underline this.

Back to the discredited and morally vacuous Conservative clemency if necessary but not necesarily clemency policy. The Conservatives have now handily released a guide online of factors that will influence whether they'll decide to help you, or let you die. As well, all applications must be submitted in writing.

Read the "factors" for yourself. And be sure to submit your clemency application in writing on Form 6B, titled "Please Don't Kill Me, Mr. Harper" and allow 6-8 weeks for processing, and affix proper postage. The Harper Government is not responsible for lost or misdirected clemency applications, and incomplete or illegible forms will be returned to sender, or next of kin.

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Passing sentence on the Conservative Party

Even with Stephen Harper's mad, frightened dash to get into an election before the house of cards that is his alleged reputation for “leadership and competence” comes tumbling down, there are still a some interesting time-bombs that could blow-up in his face mid-campaign.

Just off hand, there's Julie Couillard's tell-all book, telling her life story from cavorting with biker gang members to canoodling with former foreign affairs minister Maxime Bernier and his classified briefs. It's release date is Oct. 14, but count on some juicy excerpts being released to the hungry media hordes mid-campaign to maximize publicity.

The catalog says the book will cover Couillard's life from her upbringing in a modest Montreal suburb through her relationships with men embroiled in the world of Montreal's criminal biker gangs through to her experiences in the corridors of power on the arm of former Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier where she met a number of world leaders including U.S. President George W. Bush.

Moreover, it looks like Couillard is going to use the book to set the record straight and settle more than a few scores. "In this profoundly human autobiography, she responds to the multiple lies, half-truths and speculation that has been written about her over the course of the last few months," reads the catalog.

Then there's Stephen Harper's lawsuit against the Liberal Party for libel relating to the Chuck Cadman affair and the allegations the Conservatives offered a $1 million life insurance policy to the dying MP if he voted with the Conservatives in a confidence vote. Speaking of which, Harper still has yet to explain just what he meant by “financial considerations”, just who supposedly doctored the recording of him talking about it, why they'd do that, how any editing would change the meaning of what he said...basically, he's offered no credible explanation for the affair or his role in it.

Anyway, the lawsuit is proceeding and the next hearing should take place during the campaign:

But Mr. Dearden revealed that the next hearing in the case — a potentially explosive court drama that could take place in the midst of an expected federal election campaign — may now have to be postponed.

Postpone, now why would Harper's lawyer want to do that? I thought he wanted this case to proceed expeditiously, to hold those dastardly Liberals to account for their libelous libels? I guess that takes back-seat to headlines mid-campaign reminding us of allegations of the Conservatives trying to buy off MPs. But doesn't he want his personality back before the election?

Lastly for our campaign calendar, there's a federal court hearing relating to the death penalty, always a meaty campaign topic. You may recall that shortly coming to power, Harper and Stockwell Day decided they didn't really care anymore if Canadians got executed abroad, ending a long-running policy of seeking clemency for Canadians facing the death penalty in other countries.

The widely expected mid-October federal election would see one of the Conservative government's most controversial decisions -- its refusal to seek clemency for a Canadian on death row in the United States -- put on trial at the height of the campaign.

The Federal Court of Canada has scheduled a two-day judicial review of Canada's new policy on the death penalty to begin Sept. 29 in Toronto.

A legal team representing Alberta-born murderer Ronald Smith, 50, and government lawyers will present opposing arguments about the October 2007 policy change, which ended a long-standing federal practice of automatically seeking clemency for any Canadian facing execution in a foreign country.

This should generate some interesting debate mid-campaign. Canadians have firmly rejected the death penalty as morally unconscionable and unacceptable to our legal system. The Conservatives are going to have to explain to Canadians why they are doing an end-run around that consensus, and explain whether or not this is the beginning of a plan to re-introduce capital punishment in Canada. If we won't accept capital punishment here, we shouldn't abandon our citizens to it overseas, no matter how heinous their crimes.

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Just what values are driving our death penalty policy?

The death penalty has been somewhat in the news since the Conservatives came into power, with the government no longer automatically fighting for the commutation when Canadians abroad are sentenced to death by foreign courts.

The application of the policy has indeed been haphazard. In the case of Ronald Smith Allen, a Montreal man convicted of killing his wife and children in Ohio, the Conservatives have refused to intervene and fight against Smith being given the death penalty.

However, in the case of Mohamed Kohail, a Canadian sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia for his party in a schoolyard brawl which led to a death, the Conservatives have decided they will intervene on Kohail’s behalf.

The Conservatives say they’re intervening with Kohail because the application of the death penalty wasn’t fair in this case, but it was done fairly in the Allen case. Canadian diplomats say it’s harder for them to make the case for Kohail with the Saudis and be taken seriously when the Conservatives refuse to make the case in the U.S. for Allen.

Here’s the line that caught my eye in this story:

Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier has said he will seek a sentence that is in line "with our values."

Just what values would those be Maxime? If you mean Canadian values, then you should be fighting the Allen case too, because Canadian values are firmly against the death penalty. That’s why we did away with it way back in 1976.

It’s unclear to me just what values would allow you to be fine with the death penalty in the one case, but against it in the other. Conservative values, I suppose. If your only concern is about the judicial process, why bring values into it? Just what supposed values are driving Conservative policy here?

Here’s an idea for an opposition motion I think the Liberals, BQ and NDP could all get behind. Rather everybody using all their opposition day motions to embarrass the other opposition parties, why not use one to pass a motion calling on the government to reinstate the longstanding Canadian tradition of seeking clemency in all death penalty cases, and reaffirming Canada’s opposition to capital punishment?

Of course, Harper would probably make it a confidence motion…

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