In 1990, Curtis Osborne, a small-time cocaine dealer and addict, killed two people in a dispute over $400. His crime revulsed the town of Griffin, Georgia, one measure of which was the bigoted remark a local inmate reported hearing at the jail: "That little -- [racist slur] deserves the chair."
As repulsive as the remark was on its own, far more disturbing was the fact that the person alleged to have uttered it was Osborne's own court-appointed lawyer. And somehow, through years of appeals in state and federal courts, no tribunal has squarely confronted this basic but fundamental question: is a person on trial for his life entitled to a lawyer who does not hold him in contempt and believe he should be executed?
From 2005 to 2015 this blog presented news items and resources relating to trial advocacy and the legal system, with a focus on Washington State. It was developed to support the Trial Advocacy Program at the University of Washington School of Law, but broadened to include appellate practice, the courts, access to justice, and related topics. It is no longer active.
Monday, June 9, 2008
If Your Lawyer Wants You Executed - TIME
If Your Lawyer Wants You Executed - TIME, June 2, 2008:
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