Today, a “special master” in St. Louis begins review of the case of Reggie Clemons to determine if his trial was fair and his death sentence is just. Reggie Clemons is on Missouri’s death row for murders all the evidence shows he did not commit. When Troy Davis was executed one year ago this month, we thought we’d put the absolute horror and national shame that our government would put an innocent man to death behind us. But the case of Reggie Clemons looms large – Missouri, the state that “compromised” Black people by authorizing slavery within certain parameters in order to be admitted to the United States, has continued that legacy of disrespect of Black life by engaging in a flawed, decades-long effort to execute an innocent Black man.
Let’s back up a little and lay out this terrible tale -
Late one night in 1991, two young white woman plunged to their deaths from the Chain of Rocks Bridge over the Mississippi River in St. Louis, Missouri. The original suspect, Thomas Cummins, the out-of-town cousin of the women originally admitted to making a sexual advance on one of them, startling her and causing her to fall into the river, her sister jumping in afterwards in a failed attempt to save her. Cummins confessed to the crime after failing a lie detector test and changing his story several times. Only after the police charged and then inexplicably released this first suspect, did they turn to Reggie Clemons, who had no criminal history, and three others and charge them with murder.
Reggie Clemons maintains his innocence and there is no physical evidence of his involvement in the deaths - no fingerprints, no DNA, no hair or fiber samples – despite a rape accusation. Reggie Clemons’ case was marred by race bias, police brutality, a unconstitutionally-constituted jury, prosecutorial misconduct, and a wholly inadequate defense.
He was convicted as an accomplice mostly by the testimony of two witnesses, the one who at first was considered a prime suspect, and another who confessed to participating in the deaths, received a much lighter sentence, and is out of prison. The first witness, the victims’ cousin, who was with the victims at the time, confessed to the crime himself and was originally charged with their murders. He later claimed Clemons and three others had raped the women, pushing them off the bridge and forcing him to jump. He claimed he was forced to swim to shore, an almost impossible feat to survive, especially with clothes intact and hair neatly-combed and dry, as his were. This story failed a polygraph test. With this new story however, his own charges were dropped.
The second witness, the only white codefendant, gave different accounts to police and in another codefendant’s trial than the testimony he gave at Mr. Clemons’ trial. He told a jailhouse friend he would lie in exchange for a plea bargain because no one would believe a bunch of black men. That witness pled guilty and is now out of jail.
These two witnesses were white, while Mr. Clemons and the two other young men sentenced to death in this case, Marlin Gray and Antonio Richardson were Black. Of Mr. Clemons’ two Black codefendants, one remains in prison, and the other was executed. All three consistently maintained their innocence.
The parade of legal horribles masquerading as due process include the following:
Reggie Clemons’ case has many of the classic concerns that plague capital punishment in the United States – racism, prosecutorial misconduct, a coerced confession, lying witnesses, ineffective defense counsel, and no physical evidence. The similarities between Mr. Clemons’ case and that of Troy Davis are eerie.
We hope the special master appointed to hear the matter this week reviews the facts and processes of this case thoroughly. The sham prosecution and the failure of the state to produce any reliable evidence to support the conviction and death sentence cast further doubt on the failed government program that is called capital punishment. Reggie Clemons was, at best, in the wrong place at the wrong time.
We must heed Marlin Gray’s final words before his execution in 2005 – “This is not a death, it is a lynching.”
Two years ago I was asked to work on the Free Reggie case with my high school law students and we had to decline because I have to follow administration's wishes. It would have been interesting to have the students research and try to sort out the case. Reggie Clemmons did admit to raping one of the sisters. her body was never found.
Where the big question comes in, did these accused teens and one "adult male" admit to these crimes as a result of police brutality? Why did the 15 year old in the case, who could not be put to death, admit to the rapes and killings? He is out of prison now,
This seems to be a case that will not have any resolution, but if in this hour, 21 years later, there is doubt, then it seems to commute the sentence to life in prison is the only sensible thing to do rather than go forward with the death penalty. It will not help Julie and Robin and if you read their poetry and words, they were some loving and compassionate young women.
Perplexing from the initial questioning is Mr. Cummins comes in on behalf of his son only to conclude that his own son was not telling the truth. He left still convinced that his own son was not telling the truth not to mention failed lie detector test. Allbeit the failing of this test is not admissable but it does give rise to some speculation of his innocence when he cant give a clear statement to save his live but rather implicates himself in several areas.
I think what takes him away from culpability is the fact that the city gave hime $150K which, IMO, was probably predicated by his counsel and not his family?
Whether or not any of these black men were involved is underminded by Mr. Winfrey who played the game to win. Why blame yourself if you can blame someone else? The idea, when you are being charged with a heinous crime, is to try and distance yourself and by "imbelishing" the truth to implicate everyone more eroneously then himself then the system worked.
Now the "Julie" in quotation marks are theories that the "Julie" recovered was not Julie at all simply based on what Thomas said about the girls when they entered the water. There were also conflicting reports that the dental records matched? Don't know if this is true or not but give one a moment of...hmph? What is known is that Robin was never found...sad, really.
Another aspect to really ponder was the police brutality. If Thomas claims to have be "brutalized" and received a large chunk of money what are the odds on favor that the three other black men were not beaten to confession? Sure they confessed but was it coerced and were they possibly fed facts of the case while they confessed?
This case has more doubt than conviction so I question the DP.
THE TURNING
~ a poem both for and by Troy Davis,
composed using only the words
from his last letter to me ~
In this world, each word is life—
The heart of tomorrow
Already touched with believing,
The hope I pray
To bless into being;
For freedom keeps the page of change
Filled with the “if” of God,
Enough that you and I express
What’s fighting to be Cause;
So read this world, this poem, as life—
As Troy, as family—
And thank the better heart that wrote
Each wanted word for me.
---
Roxanne Ivey
Poet for Positive Change
www.linkedin.com/in/roxanneivey
For those interested, Daniel Winfrey's testimony and other testimony can be read at http://www.marlin-gray.com/?id=legal_papers&dl=winfrey.
Here is a very key line from Winfrey's testimony: "My attorney told me that in Missouri if you act with another in a crime that you're just as guilty as the person that does it." That is true. That is Missouri law. Loud voices like Amnesty International have made a point of saying misleading, irrelevant things such as, “The prosecution conceded that Clemons neither killed the sisters, nor planned the crime.” They try to use statements like this one as evidence of Clemons’s innocence. But such statements only prove that Amnesty is 1) being deceitful and 2) does not understand Missouri state law. What matters under Missouri law is that Clemons was there and aided in the crimes. That is what the state found to be true. Clemons admits to being there. He played a role in the first-degree assault, felonious restraint, rape, and murder of the Kerry sisters and the felonious restraint, first-degree robbery, and attempted murder of Tom Cummins. In Missouri it does not matter if Clemons's hand was the hand that pushed the sisters to their deaths. Clemons is just as guilty as the three other criminals for these acts.
The defense, by the way, tried to suggest that Winfrey could not be trusted because he admitted to being a murderer, and by extension the defense's suggestion was that he therefore acted alone. (The defense's closing question on Winfrey's cross-examination was, "Sir, you are a convicted murderer, aren't you?") The defense’s entire case for Marlin Gray, by the way, was centered around the idea that Clemons was more guilty and played a greater role in the crimes than Gray. Read the testimony.
Back to Winfrey. One would think that if Winfrey were innocent he would not confess to taking part in the crimes while in the presence of his attorney and parents--especially because of his status as a minor. The fact is that Winfrey had nothing to gain in confessing; he was a minor and did not face the death penalty. A thirty-year sentence is not an appealing deal. It is important that Tanya Greene and readers get their facts straight on this. When Greene makes a point of saying that Winfrey "received a much lighter sentence, and is out of prison," she is intentionally withholding the fact . . .
Hopefully some of the folks that read highly biased op-ed pieces like this will do some of their own research.
http://prodpinnc.blogspot.com/2011/11/troy-davis-innocent-frauds-of-anti.html
The false innocence claims by anti death penalty activists are common, blatant and legendary.
Let's just hope this isn't another one.
Some examples:
4) "The Innocent Executed: Deception & Death Penalty Opponents"
http://homicidesurvivors.com/2009/10/08/the-innocent-executed-deception--death-penalty-opponents--draft.aspx
5) The 130 (now 140) death row "innocents" scam
http://homicidesurvivors.com/2009/03/04/fact-checking-issues-on-innocence-and-the-death-penalty.aspx
6) "Exoneration Inflation: Justice Scalia’s Concurrence in Kansas v. March", by Ward Campbell, Supervising Deputy Attorney General, California Department of Justice, p 49, The Journal of the Institute for the Advancement of Criminal Justice, Issue 2, Summer 2008
http://www.cjlf.org/files/CampbellExonerationInflation2008.pdf
10) "The Myth Of Innocence"Â, Joshua Marquis, puÂblished in the Journal of Criminal Law & CriminologÂy - 3/31/2005, NorthwesteÂrn University School of Law, Chicago, Illinois
http://coastda.blogspot.com/2005/03/myth-of-innocence.html
11) Sister Helen Prejean & the death penalty: A Critical Review"
http://homicidesurvivors.com/2009/05/04/sister-helen-prejean--the-death-penalty-a-critical-review.aspx
12) "At the Death House Door" Can Rev. Carroll Pickett be trusted?"
http://homicidesurvivors.com/2009/01/30/fact-checking-is-very-welcome.aspx
13) "Cameron Todd Willingham: Another Media Meltdown", A Collection of Articles
http://homicidesurvivors.com/categories/Cameron%20Todd%20Willingham.aspx