The New York Times

Wednesday, August 6, 1997

Injustice on Death Row

Thomas Thompson, a former boat repairman convicted 14 years ago of the rape and murder- of a woman in Laguna Beach, Calif., was scheduled to be killed by a lethal injection of potassium chloride at 12: 01 A.M. yesterday. But with less than 36 hours to go, an 11-member Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals panel in San Francisco blocked the execution because it was troubled by the rape conviction. Under California law, it was the alleged rape that made the murder a capital case.

The drama is not over. On Monday night the United States Supreme Court granted California's request for a hearing on two procedural points, raising the disturbing possibility that Mr. Thompson may yet be executed not with standing the Ninth Circuit's deep misgivings.

Gov. Pete Wilson, who had rejected Mr. Thompson's plea for clemency, expressed outrage at the Ninth Circuit decision. But the real outrage was his portrayal of the 7-to-4 ruling as the irresponsible act of a "coterie of liberal judges." It was instead a principled decision to avoid injustice and to preserve the integrity of the judicial process.

The question was not whether Mr. Thompson was guilty of murder but the validity of the rape conviction. The court overturned that conviction because his lawyer had not provided the minimally effective defense guaranteed by the Constitution. It also found that the prosecution had used two "highly dubious" informants and violated due process by using "flagrantly inconsistent" theories, facts and arguments to convict him and an accomplice.

The court was not alone in its discomfort. Unlike the four other men executed in California since the state resumed capital punishment, Mr. Thompson has consistently asserted his innocence. Two years ago a district court judge appointed by President Reagan overturned the rape conviction, based on the inadequate job done by Mr. Thompson's lawyer. A three-judge Ninth Circuit panel later reaffirmed the conviction. It was this decision that the 11-judge panel has thrown out. Seven former prosecutors, including the author of the state's death penalty law, filed an unusual brief asserting that "our adversarial system has not produced a fair and reliable result."

The Supreme Court will review whether the Ninth Circuit violated a new Federal law limiting prisoners to one Federal appeal, and whether it improperly reviewed the case after a deadline contained in the court's own rules. On the merits, though, the appeals court decision warrants respect. Indeed, it should inspire the Supreme Court to rethink its casual approach to unconstitutional execution that promises to make this a record year for capital punishment.

q(" DAN DOC x;" NEWFE TXT Ma " " b " GIAN TXT qC #' ô AC H I N A ê. t x t CHINA TXT Ä' " " ( " Af e t t e ës 1 . . t x t FETTES~1TXT A]j " " aj ", AN E W F E . t x t ARMS TXT ê;y" USA/DEATH PENALTY

The New York Times

Wednesday, August 6, 1997

Injustice on Death Row

Thomas Thompson, a former boat r K û " c Ä Æ à ¼ E I ) a }

K ûûûûûûûöñûñìçâ A! A! A! A! A! F

E

E

y E

A! K K ( Times New Roman Symbol & Arial É

É

G G É

É

E

I " O D h ë; IA k k