US Supreme Court orders 6 death row cases reviewed
Legal Events
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday sent the cases of six Texas death row inmates, including one of the infamous "Texas 7" gang of escapees, back to a lower court for reviews of whether attorneys in earlier stages of appeals let the men down.
The decisions are in line with last week's ruling in another Texas case where the justices, in a 5-4 vote, said a condemned prisoner had deficient legal help early because appeals lawyers didn't raise challenges that his trial lawyers were ineffective.
The high court returned the cases to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for review. None of the six has a pending execution date, although some had come close to being put to death in the past before their punishment was delayed by the courts.
Among the condemned prisoners is Donald Newbury, 51, one of seven inmates who broke out of a South Texas prison in 2000. One fugitive killed himself as Colorado authorities closed in on the gang. The remaining six were convicted of killing a suburban Dallas police officer Aubrey Hawkins during a Christmas Eve robbery in Irving in 2000. Two of the six already have been executed.
Related listings
-
Court dismisses lawsuits in power plant deaths
Legal Events 05/14/2013The Colorado Court of Appeals has dismissed lawsuits against three companies in the deaths of five workers at a power plant in 2007. The appeals court agreed Thursday with a judge that there was no evidence that the companies violated duties or faile...
-
Lawyer questions memory of Philadelphia accuser
Legal Events 01/18/2013A longtime heroin addict whose complaint helped imprison a Philadelphia archdiocese official came under attack Wednesday, as jurors in a priest-abuse trial learned that he had given three different locations for one alleged rape.Defense lawyers quest...
-
Court weighs warrantless blood tests in DUI cases
Legal Events 01/09/2013The Supreme Court is considering whether police must get a warrant before ordering a blood test on an unwilling drunken-driving suspect. The justices heard arguments Wednesday in a case involving a disputed blood test from Missouri. Police stopped a ...