There is big news on the web that tomorrow, lawyers in South Carolina are going to seek a new trial for a teenager who was executed in 1944. None of the evidence from the trial back then is around. Not even the transcript of the trial can be found. Nevertheless, the lawyers are claiming that they have new evidence and want to reopen the case despite the execution of their "client" 70 years ago. The point of the lawyers is that the executed teen was black and the victims were white and the claim is that racism played a major roll in the conviction.
I don't know if racism was a major, minor or any factor in the trial all those years ago. I do know, however, that it does not matter right now. Reopening the case would require a major expenditure of state resources to deal with a case that could never be retried. There are no witnesses anymore. There is no evidence anymore. There are some affidavits from family members of the executed teen who supposedly place him elsewhere than at the scene of the crime at the relevant time. Really? Some relative who would have to be at least 85 now is going to remember what happened at a specific time 70 plus years ago and tell us now what happened? Oh, and let's not forget that if the case is reopened, there will undoubtedly be a wrongful death claim filed by the family against the state. These same family members whose affidavits would reopen the case are the people who would profit from the claim.
There is a way to fight racism. Reopening 70 year old executions is not that way.
I don't know if racism was a major, minor or any factor in the trial all those years ago. I do know, however, that it does not matter right now. Reopening the case would require a major expenditure of state resources to deal with a case that could never be retried. There are no witnesses anymore. There is no evidence anymore. There are some affidavits from family members of the executed teen who supposedly place him elsewhere than at the scene of the crime at the relevant time. Really? Some relative who would have to be at least 85 now is going to remember what happened at a specific time 70 plus years ago and tell us now what happened? Oh, and let's not forget that if the case is reopened, there will undoubtedly be a wrongful death claim filed by the family against the state. These same family members whose affidavits would reopen the case are the people who would profit from the claim.
There is a way to fight racism. Reopening 70 year old executions is not that way.
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