First case of innocent man executed in Texas: Governor Rick Perry's fear of the truth

Texas Governor Rick Perry suddenly decided to fire three board members of the state agency, whose investigation into the controversial 2004 execution of Cameron Todd Willingham could help establish that Rick Perry is the first Governor in the US to have signed the death warrant of an innocent man.

The move is compared by critics to Nixon's in the Watergate when Nixon fired the prosecutor Archibald Cox to avoid turning over the Watergate tapes.

The new chairman chosen by Rick Perry,  Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley is considered one of the most conservative, hard-line prosecutors in Texas. He is reported to have ordered the investigation into Willingham's execution delayed indefinitely, saying he "couldn't begin to guess" when the commission would reconvene.

Willingham was convicted of setting a fire in his home in Corsicana that killed his three daughters. He maintained his innocence, even from the death chamber. A state fire marshal, and a local fire investigator ruled it was arson and testified that a liquid accelerant was ignited and the blaze was set to prevent anyone from rescuing the children.

The case is currently in the hands of the Texas Forensic Science Commission which role includes investigating "in a timely manner" allegations of "professional negligence or misconduct that would substantially affect the integrity of the results of a forensic analysis conducted by an accredited laboratory, facility or entity."

The commission was scheduled to review and discuss a report Friday from Craig Beyler, a fire expert from Baltimore, Md., who criticized the local and state fire investigations on the Willingham case as unscientific. Beyler submitted his findings Aug. 17 in a 51 page report , finding that the investigations presented at the trial "did not comport with either the modern standard of care or the standard of care expressed by fire investigation texts and papers in the period 1980-1992."

Here’s how David Grann of the New Yorker described Beyler’s findings on the investigation that led to Willingham’s death.
"In a scathing report, he concluded that investigators in the Willingham case had no scientific basis for claiming that the fire was arson, ignored evidence that contradicted their theory, had no comprehension of flashover and fire dynamics, relied on discredited folklore, and failed to eliminate potential accidental or alternative causes of the fire" .

Altogether, three independent forensic investigations have now concluded that there was no evidence of arson. But the commission now halted may not have a chance to deliver its conclusions.

More importantly, it has also appeared that Gov. Perry was informed before Willingham's execution that the claim of arson made by fire officials and the prosecution in the 1991 trial was likely unfounded. Put together, those facts may make Gov. Perry "the first governor in history to preside over the death of [a known] innocent man," CNN stated in a report aired Friday.

As a result, political author Glenn W. Smith now argues that Governor Perry could be prosecuted under USC.18.1001, as he may have violated federal law when he obstructed the investigation into the execution ow Willingham. He said that "Federal laws and guidelines are in place to keep that from happening.
Perry may well have violated those laws and guidelines, for which there are criminal penalties."

USC.18.1001 specifically  states  that "(...)whoever, in any matter within the jurisdiction of the executive, legislative, or judicial branch of the Government of the United States, knowingly and willfully—
(1) falsifies, conceals, or covers up by any trick, scheme, or device a material fact;
(2) makes any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation; or
(3) makes or uses any false writing or document knowing the same to contain any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or entry;
shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years (...)."

Democrat Bob Schieffer said, “No one in public life should ever be afraid of the truth. In the final analysis, truth is the only thing that serves justice.”

The truth in this case would have helped to save the life of an innocent man, who had already had to suffer from the tragic loss of his three children. Incidently, the truth is also what would help to save the life of other innocents wrongfully convicted, and who are currently standing on death row in Texas, such as Reprieve's client Linda Carty.