A Judge Sits on his Leather Chair

Posted on February 23, 2014 by Justice for Willie

As so many times before, Willie Jerome Manning is waiting. He is waiting to find out whether the State approves the items that he wants to have tested for DNA and fingerprints, to provide evidence for his case of the two students. He is also waiting for the State’s response to his appeal in his case of the two elderly ladies, in which he provided additional evidence that the State presented false evidence, and failed to disclose evidence that was favorable to him.

During this period of waiting it is perhaps good that he has had the distraction of moving to a different cell while his window was being replaced during building work.

Willie’s experience of waiting must now be colored by his experience in 2006,[i] when he was waiting for a Mississippi Supreme Court’s ruling. In 2004 the Court had overturned both his convictions, following a review of both the verdicts because of anomalies in the evidence.

“The prosecution then asked the Mississippi Supreme Court to reconsider its decision. This is usually a formality, but it can take months. As he waited, Willie tried to piece his life back together. He wrote constantly to his now 15-year-old daughter. He sent her the little money he had saved, so she could take her friends skating for her birthday. By the time he got out of prison, he would be 40, but he would still have a future.

“Then, on 9 March 2006, Willie received a large envelope in the mail from the Supreme Court. “I read just the first page. I didn’t have to go further,” he said. “I bent down like I had been kicked in the stomach.” The letter said: “The original opinion is withdrawn and this opinion is substituted therefore . . . the petition for post-conviction relief is denied.

“A judge sits on his leather chair in his office, ruminating on an opinion. Many miles away, a prisoner waits to hear the verdict on his life. To lose is despair; but nothing compares to the cruelty of victory torn away.”

Though Willie’s cases seem to be progressing well at the moment, he knows from bitter experience that this could change in an instant. It is, as always, an anxious wait.

[i] See article by Clive Stafford-Smith, writing in The New Statesman, December 4, 2006.

Posted in African American, Brookville Garden murders, Brookville Gardens murders, capital punishment, Clive Stafford Smith, conviction, criminal justice USA, death penalty, death penalty injustice, Death Row Injustice, Fly Manning, Injustice, Jon Steckler and Tiffany Miller, Mississippi, Mississippi judicial system, Mississippi Supreme Court, Oktibbeha County, prosecutors, racism, USA injustice, Willie Fly Manning, Willie Jerome Manning, Willie Jerome Manning Mississippi Death Row, Willie Manning, wrongful convictions | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Final List of Evidence

Posted on February 16, 2014 by Justice for Willie

Willie Manning’s lawyers have 30 days from 31 January 2014 to reach agreement with the prosecution about exactly which items should be tested for DNA and fingerprints. The items in question relate to Willie’s 1992 case involving two students, Jon Steckler and Tiffany Miller.

There are many items from the crime scene that could be probative. No DNA testing has been performed on this evidence; in fact, much of the technical means for testing the samples was not available when the crime occurred in December 1992. Willie has argued that if all the items are submitted to a suitable lab, advanced screening techniques could be performed that may demonstrate which of them may yield DNA profiles, and what types of DNA testing would be required for each (STR DNA testing, Y-STR DNA testing, mitochondrial DNA testing or mini-STR DNA testing).

Items that Willie has listed as likely to yield DNA are: hair taken from various parts of the crime scene, a sexual assault kit, victims’ fingernail scrapings, victims’ clothing, parts of the car that were removed e.g. the steering wheel, items found in the car (a cup, bottle and hat), and fingerprint lifts (such lifts may yield a DNA profile).

Hair played a major part in Willie’s trial, when an FBI expert, Chester Blythe, testified that, based on examination using a microscope, hair from Miller’s car came from ‘a person of the black race’; the prosecutor then led the jury to equate this person with Willie, who is African-American. The same sample of hair gained prominence in May 2013, shortly before Willie’s scheduled execution, when the FBI admitted that their agent had ‘exceeded the limits of science’ in declaring the hair to be African-American in origin; so this critical testimony was now dismissed.

Surprisingly, hair found in the victims’ hands was apparently never examined, and neither was hair found in the sexual assault kit, despite these samples presumably offering a more secure link to the crime than hair vacuumed from the car.

Willie also requests that fingerprints from the victims’ car be compared with fingerprints in the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) and the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS). When fingerprints were lifted from the crime scene they were compared with prints on file for the local area: there was no match with Willie, the victims, or any of the other numerous individuals who were investigated as suspects but not charged. The 74 million prints in the IAFIS are far more likely to yield a match.

We wish Willie well in his quest to secure effective and transparent testing, for which he has waited so long.

Posted in African American, capital murder, death penalty, DNA testing, execution, FBI hair review, fingerprint testing, flawed testimony, Fly Manning, forensics, Injustice, Jon Steckler and Tiffany Miller, Mississippi, Oktibbeha County, post-conviction DNA evidence, racial discrimination, Starkville, USA injustice, Willie Fly Manning, Willie Jerome Manning, Willie Manning, wrongful convictions | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Good Start to 2014!

Posted on February 1, 2014 by Justice for Willie

Willie Manning’s request for DNA testing and fingerprint analysis was heard on Friday, January 31 2014 at the Oktibbeha County Circuit Court. Willie’s request relates to his 1992 case involving the murders of two students, Jon Steckler and Tiffany Miller.

This hearing went well for Willie: details need to be finalized, but it seems likely that Willie’s request for DNA testing and fingerprint analysis will be permitted.

We trust that 2014 will continue to be positive for Willie!

Posted in African American, capital murder, capital punishment, death penalty, death penalty injustice, Death Row, DNA testing, execution, FBI hair review, fingerprints, Fly Manning, forensic hair testimony, forensics, Jon Steckler and Tiffany Miller, junk science, Mississippi, murders, Oktibbeha County, Oktibbeha County Circuit Court, post-conviction DNA evidence, racial prejudice, stacked jury, Tiffany Miller and Jon Steckler, USA, Willie Fly Manning, Willie Jerome Manning, Willie Manning, witness testimony, wrongful convictions | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Oktibbeha Court Hearing: Time Set

Posted on January 27, 2014 by Justice for Willie

Willie’s request for DNA testing and fingerprint analysis is due to be heard at 11 a.m. on Friday, January 31, 2014, at the Oktibbeha County Circuit Court in Starkville, Mississippi. His request relates to his 1992 case of two students, Jon Steckler and Tiffany Miller.

In a recent letter, Willie said he was ‘sick with the flu or some other strong virus’ over the holiday period, but this news will cheer him: he will soon know if he can go ahead with the DNA testing and fingerprint comparison. And if some of his supporters are at the court, that will cheer him all the more!

Posted in African American, American justice, capital punishment, conviction, criminal justice USA, death penalty, Death Row, DNA testing, execution, fingerprint comparison, fingerprints, Fly Manning, forensics, Jon Steckler and Tiffany Miller, junk science, law enforcement USA, Mississippi, Oktibbeha County, Oktibbeha County Circuit Court, post-conviction DNA evidence, racism, Starkville, Tiffany Miller and Jon Steckler, USA, Willie Fly Manning, Willie Jerome Manning, Willie Manning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Symptoms of a Wrongful Conviction

Posted on January 12, 2014 by Justice for Willie

Last month the Mississippi Supreme Court  received two Amicus Curiae (Friends of the Court) briefs in connection with one of Willie Jerome Manning’s cases, the 1993 case involving two elderly ladies. The briefs, from the Innocence Network and the National Registry of Exonerations, alert the Court to aspects of this case that frequently appear in wrongful convictions.

The Innocence Network notes five ‘symptoms’ of a wrongful conviction in Willie’s 1993 case:

  • “perjured witness testimony
  •  incentivized witness testimony
  •  inaccurate forensics
  •  a recanting witness
  •  State suppression of exculpatory evidence”.

It supports its claim by referring to a study by the National Institute of Justice, which examined 460 cases and identified the systemic failures that are most likely to lead to wrongful convictions; these failures all occur in Willie’s case.

The National Registry of Exonerations reiterates the constitutional breaches noted by the Innocence Network, and cites additional factors as cause for concern:

  • “Mr. Manning was sentenced to death. Exonerations are concentrated among death sentences.
  •  Mr. Manning was convicted of murdering two women. Murder cases with female victims are more likely to end in exoneration than those with male victims.
  •  The investigation of the murders for which Mr. Manning was convicted remained open for more than 18 months. Capital convictions with long, difficult investigations are more likely to produce exonerations than those with shorter investigations.”

The Innocence Project concludes by:

“respectfully urg(ing) this Court to consider carefully the strong possibility that these constitutional violations—so common in other wrongful convictions— again caused the conviction of the wrong person, Willie Jerome Manning. That this possibility even exists should, at the very least, mean Mr. Manning’s conviction should be reversed so the case may be reinvestigated.”

We hope that the Court will give these briefs careful consideration.

Posted in African American, Brookville Garden, capital punishment, conviction, criminal justice USA, death penalty, Death Row, Fly Manning, Mississippi, Mississippi judicial system, Mississippi Supreme Court, murders, USA injustice, Willie Jerome Manning, Willie Manning, wrongful convictions | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Troubling Pattern of Wrongful Convictions

Posted on January 7, 2014 by Justice for Willie

In a brief filed with the Mississippi Supreme Court, the Director of the National Registry of Exonerations provides guidance for the judges considering Willie Manning’s 1993 case. As well as focusing on Willie’s case, the guidance highlights this shocking fact:

“…death sentences are about 100 times more likely to end in exoneration (because of wrongful convictions*) than prison sentences in the United States”.

Other statistics confirm the prevalence of a pattern that disadvantages defendants facing the possibility of a death sentence. For instance, perjury and other deliberate false accusations constitute the most common reason for exonerations, with 55% of exonerees affected; yet the proportion of death penalty exonerees that suffered such accusations is significantly higher (72%).

The brief offers explanations as to why this systemic disadvantage prevails:

“…there are reasonable explanations for this troubling pattern…   Police and prosecutors devote far more resources to murder than to lesser crimes.  As a result, they often identify and prosecute murder suspects after difficult investigations that would not be pursued for robberies, let alone auto thefts. This intense focus on murder … may also increase the number of wrongful murder convictions. Homicide investigations are often difficult because, by definition, the victims are unavailable; nonetheless, cases that would otherwise have been abandoned are brought to trial because someone has been killed – which means that the authorities pursue murder prosecutions when the evidence is marginal and the risk of error is substantial; the extraordinary emotional and practical pressures to secure convictions for heinous crimes tempt police officers and prosecutors to cut corners; and everyone involved—the police, the prosecutors, the jurors, the judge—is reluctant to release a defendant who seems likely to have committed a vicious murder even if the evidence of guilt is open to doubt.”

As well as being pertinent to Willie’s case, the findings of the National Registry of Exonerations should surely be ringing alarm bells all over the USA.

*The italicized section has been added.

Posted in African American, American justice, Brookville Garden, capital punishment, conviction, criminal justice USA, death penalty, death penalty injustice, Death Row, Fly Manning, Injustice, law enforcement USA, Mississippi, Mississippi Supreme Court, murders, USA injustice, Willie Fly Manning, Willie Jerome Manning, Willie Manning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Developments in both cases

Posted on December 21, 2013 by Justice for Willie

Over the holiday period Willie Jerome Manning will be able to consider recent developments in both his cases.

Regarding the case of the two students, on December 16 the State filed its response to Willie’s request for DNA testing and fingerprint comparison. The State indicated to the Oktibbeha County Circuit Court that it is unlikely to object to Willie’s request. It also asked the Court to allow an interim hearing to establish exactly which items should be DNA tested, and which fingerprints should be analyzed. Willie’s request and the State’s response will be considered at the Court’s convenience.

Regarding the case of the two elderly ladies, Willie filed an appeal in the Mississippi Supreme Court on December 12. He refers to the facts established in post-conviction proceedings, namely:

  • Unimpeachable records, including undisclosed police notes, show that the main (and crucial) State witness lied about living in an apartment across the street from the victims: this apartment was in fact unoccupied at the time of the murders. (In statements taken in 1994 this witness said nothing about seeing Willie enter the victims’ apartment; it was not until 1996 that he testified against Willie.)
  • The State did not disclose the records of the police notes that showed this witness was lying.
  • This witness also lied about hearing Willie “confess” to the murders.
  • This witness’s false trial testimony was given as a result of pressure brought by the State.
  • The State failed to disclose exculpatory evidence about a shoeprint found at the crime scene (the shoe size of this print was size 8, whereas Willie’s shoe size is about size 11).
  • Another witness further undermined his own credibility by making statements that were contradictory.

As an additional fact, Willie states that his trial attorneys failed to investigate and impeach the witnesses mentioned above, failed to investigate the shoeprint found at the murder scene, and failed to investigate other suspects. He also argues that at the evidentiary hearing the Oktibbeha County Circuit Court erred in refusing to authorize for presentation all the documents that he had requested.

Record Excerpts from this case, including the Police Department notes and the Mississippi Crime Laboratory footwear case notes, are available at the State of Mississippi Judiciary website.

The Christmas period will not be marked by festivity for Willie; but he will be cheered by the knowledge that his friends in Mississippi and all over the world will be thinking of him. We wish Willie a peaceful Christmas and New Year.

Posted in African American, Brookville Garden, capital punishment, conviction, death penalty, Death Row, DNA testing, fingerprint comparison, Fly Manning, Injustice, Jon Steckler and Tiffany Miller, Mississippi, Mississippi Supreme Court, racism, Willie Fly Manning, Willie Jerome Manning, Willie Manning, witness testimony, wrongful convictions | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Al Jazeera Documentary: Update

Posted on December 8, 2013 by Justice for Willie

The Al Jazeera documentary featuring Willie Jerome Manning is now due to be broadcast in the spring. Willie’s story will be told during one episode of a series called “The System”; the episode will focus on the FBI review of forensic hair testimony. This review has found that in 27 death penalty convictions, including Willie’s, FBI experts may have mistakenly linked defendants to crimes with exaggerated scientific testimony (see Washington Post).

An earlier post on this website gives information about Al Jazeera’s previous reporting on Willie’s case.

Positive developments, such as the making of the Al Jazeera documentary, are helping Willie to recover his strength. In a letter written this month he said,

“My mind took a lot longer than I thought to settle in from all of that mess in May, but I’m slowly getting back to where I ought to be.”

We hope it is not long before he is fully recovered.

Posted in African American, Al Jazeera, American justice, Brookville Gardens murders, capital punishment, conviction, criminal justice USA, death penalty, Death Row, FBI hair review, Fly Manning, Injustice, Jon Steckler and Tiffany Miller, junk science, Mississippi, Willie Fly Manning, Willie Jerome Manning, Willie Manning, Willie Manning documentary | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mock Executions

Posted on November 26, 2013 by Justice for Willie

For Willie Jerome Manning the waiting continues: in both his cases there are new deadlines for lawyers to meet. In the case of the two students, the State has been granted additional time to file a response to his request for DNA testing and fingerprint comparison; the State’s response is now due on or before December 16. And in the case of the two elderly women Willie has also been granted additional time to file his brief*, which is now due on December 12.

Willie wrote recently about the trauma of coming close to execution:

“That was truly an experience.  I actually felt that I had gone through it pretty well until I was on the other side of it. Then everything felt outta body.”

This memory must be dominating Willie’s thoughts as both his cases progress.

In 2011 the Center for Constitutional Rights highlighted the experience of death row prisoners narrowly avoiding execution, sometimes repeatedly:

“…the preparation for death followed by a temporary reprieve only to be followed by a later execution date can be said to constitute a mock execution… (This) has been examined… by United Nations bodies, international tribunals, legal experts, and nongovernmental organizations, and found to constitute torture.”

With the outcome of both cases uncertain, such torture is surely being felt by Willie as he waits. His international support is critical to him now: he knows he will not have to face the uncertainty alone.

*This brief is Willie’s response to the Oktibbeha County Circuit Court’s denial of his request to raise serious post conviction issues.

Posted in African American, American torture, Brookville Gardens murders, capital punishment, conviction, death penalty, execution, Fly Manning, Injustice, Jon Steckler and Tiffany Miller, Mississippi, mock executions, Oktibbeha County, torture, Willie Fly Manning, Willie Jerome Manning, Willie Manning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Paying Attention to Fingerprints

Posted on November 19, 2013 by Justice for Willie

On November 10, Willie Jerome Manning completed 19 years on Mississippi death row. Two days earlier, Kash Delano Register  was released after spending 34 years in prison in California for a murder that he did not commit, after a witness admitted that her testimony had been a lie. As in Willie’s case, fingerprints found at the murder scene did not match those of the convicted man.

Dismissing fingerprint discrepancies seems to be common practice: Missouri’s St Louis Post-Dispatch last month reported finding 100 people arrested in error over the past 7 years, and added:

“Almost all the mistakes could have been prevented — or at least fixed immediately — had authorities paid attention to what fingerprints tried to tell them from the start.”

Willie’s request for fingerprint comparison, as well as DNA testing, will be considered at the Oktibbeha County Circuit Court some time in the coming months. Although the Mississippi Crime Lab ruled out Willie as the source of the prints, it did not compare the prints found in the car to prints in any major database. Willie believes that the person who committed the crime of which he has been convicted is likely to have fingerprints in such a database. As Justice Kitchens wrote in April,

“The victims’ families and the public at large deserve to know whether another, or an additional, perpetrator was involved.”

We trust that Willie will soon be given the opportunity to find out who left those fingerprints.

Posted in African American, conviction, death penalty, Death Row, DNA testing, fingerprint comparison, fingerprints, Fly Manning, Injustice, Jon Steckler and Tiffany Miller, junk science, Mississippi, murder victims' relatives, no physical evidence, racism, USA injustice, Willie Fly Manning, Willie Jerome Manning, Willie Manning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment