This is an interesting article about David Paul Hammer, a death row prisoner in jail for 26 years, who is ready for his June 8 execution. He's also the death row inmate who will testify at Terry Nichols' trial about what he says Timothy McVeigh told him while they were in adjacent death row cells. He's also written a book.

Providence Sister Rita Clare Gerardot of St. Mary-of-the-Woods, Ind., who has been one of Hammer’s two spiritual advisers since March 2000,....She said Hammer also told her that incarceration is "like a slow death in a cage." In a recent statement shared by the Providence sister, Hammer said, "It is my hope that protests against capital punishment will be loud and vocal on the day before I am killed—not for me, but rather for the thousands of men and women still fighting against overwhelming odds for justice in their respective cases. There is no justice in capital punishment. It is revenge, pure and simple."

He was sentenced to die in 1998 after he pleaded guilty to the 1996 murder of Andrew Marti, his cellmate at the U.S. Penitentiary in Allenwood, Pa. At the time of the murder, Hammer was serving a federal sentence for escaping in the early 1980s from an Oklahoma state prison, where he was incarcerated for kidnapping and attempted murder.

Hammer will be the 4th federal prisoner executed since 2001, when the federal reinstated the death penalty after a 38 years suspension. His website is here.

The National Coaliton Against the Death Penalty (NCADP) just sent us this press release:

The National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty Thursday called on Gov. Rick Perry and the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to commute the death sentence of James Clark, a mentally retarded man scheduled to be executed April 27. "Texas may not flout the highest court in the United States," said David Elliot, NCADP communications director. "Prosecutors and judges may not like the outcome of Atkins. But to allow this execution to proceed would create a stain of embarrassment that will not be easily hidden or soon removed."

The details and action alert are here. Please contact Gov. Perry and urge that he stop the execution of James Clark. Please further urge the governor to declare a moratorium on all Texecutions.

Yesterday, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals vacated the death sentence of another retarded prisoner, Willie Mack Modden. It also vacated the death sentence of Kenneth Vodochodks, a prisoner for whom the Court found the evidence insufficient that he aided the triggerman.

Modden is the first Texas inmate to have his death sentence commuted by the Court of Criminal Appeals since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2002 that execution of retarded inmates is unconstitutional.

On April 2, we published pictures of Thomas Lee Goldstein, a former young marine who was released from jail after serving 24 years for a crime he didn't commit. The cause of his wrongful conviction was an unreliable jailhouse snitch and an eyewitness, both of whom subsequently recanted. Yesterday, Goldstein sued for damages.

Attorneys for Thomas Lee Goldstein, who spent 24 years in prison for a murder he did not commit, announced Wednesday that they had filed damage claims, alleging that police officers and prosecutors had committed egregious acts of misconduct that cost the Vietnam veteran the prime years of his life. "For the police to fabricate evidence and use perjured testimony to achieve their conviction" was an "egregious affront" to Goldstein and the Constitution that calls for compensation, said Ronald O. Kaye, Goldstein's attorney, at a Pasadena news conference.

Goldstein, 55, said he could never be compensated for the years lost to prison. "I was 31 years old. I never got married, I never had children, I never started my career. No human being should have to suffer what I went through," Goldstein said.

The road to freedom was a long one for Goldstein:

In recent years, five federal judges said Goldstein's constitutional rights had been violated at the trial, where he was sentenced to 27 years to life in prison. Campbell's testimony was improperly influenced by police officers, the judges ruled. And the judges found that police and prosecutors had sat mute as longtime jailhouse informant Edward F. Fink — who said Goldstein confessed to him in a jail cell — lied when he testified that he had received no benefit for his testimony.

The complaint for damages includes two retired prosecutors, four retired policemen and two detectives as defendants, among others.

There will be a abortion womens' rights march this Sunday in Washington, sponsored by Planned Parenthood. It begins at the National Mall. We hope you'll be there. More information is available here--or click on this ad on the right side of TalkLeft.

The March for Women's Lives on April 25, 2004, promises to be one of the largest public demonstrations in support of reproductive freedom in history. We are organizing diverse delegations from around the world and we invite you to join us. If you're pro-choice, pro-privacy and pro-family, the March for Women's Lives is about you. Join us, as we demand reproductive and social justice for women at home and abroad.

Hundreds of thousands are expected to participate. The New York Times has this report. More reports here and here. Molly Ivins is here.

We've thought for a long time that Democratic Senator Diane Feinstein is a conservative in sheep's clothing. For example, she is the prime mover of the ill-advised Victim's Rights Amendment making its way through Congress. Yesterday, she showed her true conservatism again by calling for the death penalty in a case involving the murder of a police officer in San Francisco--after the DA decided not to charge the case as a death case. She used the dead officer's funeral service as her vechicle to make her charge--causing further division and dissension in the community. Feinstein went even further, and said that had she known the DA opposed the death penalty, she probably wouldn't have endorsed her for the position.

DA Kamala Harris has promised to put the cop's killer in prison for life. San Francisco and Alameda County do not have great success with death cases:

The D.A. in Alameda County has sought the death penalty in no fewer than four police killings over the past two decades. The prosecution's batting average: zero. District Attorney Tom Orloff, who personally prosecuted one of the cop killers back in 1986, says there appears to be a common thread -- namely, jurors' reluctance to deal out the death penalty without clear proof that the defendant woke up that day with the idea of killing a cop...."Our juries are just like San Francisco's,'' he said. "(Imposing the death penalty) is not something they jump at the opportunity to do.''

From time to time people mention Sen. Feinstein as a vice-presidential candidate. Not in our book. Not by a long shot.

9/11 Commission member and former DOJ official Jamie Gorelick will prepare part of the draft of the final report of the 9/11 Commission:

Al Felzenberg, spokesman for the commission, said Ms. Gorelick's recusal applies to the time she was deputy attorney general at the Justice Department, so she is free to take part in the investigation and drafting of the report for anything that happened after she left. That, he said, includes the legal barrier known as "the wall," which prevented the sharing of information between law-enforcement and intelligence officials. "The wall as it existed after she left, the wall as it existed in the beginning of the Bush administration, she's perfectly free to ask questions about," Mr. Felzenberg said.

Background on the Ashcroft-Gorelick controversy is here.

Update: 11 Republican Senators are calling upon Gorelick to testify.

Bump and Update: Michael Jackson's lawyers respond:

Mr. Jackson and his attorneys remind the public that an indictment is merely a formal “accusation.” We also remind the public that Michael Jackson, like any other person accused of a crime, is “presumed to be innocent.” Mr. Jackson and his attorneys are confident that after a trial on these charges, Mr. Jackson will be fully exonerated and that the allegations contained in the indictment will be shown to be patently false. In this case, Mr. Jackson is not just “presumed” to be innocent but is in fact innocent. Michael is looking forward to his day in court and wishes to thank the millions of fans throughout the world who continue to support him during this difficult period.

*************
Original Post: 4/21 8 pm

ABC News reports that Michael Jackson has been indicted by the grand jury. This is news? Who would have thought otherwise? A grand jury is a one sided proceeding where the defense does not get to appear, present evidence or cross-examine witnesses. Hence, the old saying, a grand jury would indict a ham sandwich.

The stamp of imprimateur by the grand jury makes the case no stronger today than it was last week. What it does mean is that Michael Jackson will not be allowed a preliminary hearing at which to cross-examine the cops and experts who would testify against him--no way would the prosecution have called the young accuser at the hearing anyway. By going to the grand jury, the Prosecution doesn't have to give the defense an early shot at their witnesses, and the ability to lock them into a version of events, which would allow the defense to impeach them at trial if their testimony at trial varied from that given at the prelim.

A new Associated Press poll on how Americans think we're doing in the terror war finds the answer is not so good:

Half of Americans have concerns that terrorists might be winning the war on terrorism, and one in five feels strongly that way, according to an Associated Press poll that found many people pessimistic about their security. Fears about an attack against this country are high. Two-thirds in the poll said it was likely terrorists would strike before the November elections. And a third said it was likely there would be an attack at one of the political conventions this summer.

....two-thirds of Americans acknowledge some concern that terrorists may be recruiting faster than the United States can keep up. A third of those polled feel strongly this is the case, and another third say they have at least some worries.

Strangely, this seems to help Bush instead of Kerry:

As for the election campaign, President Bush has the advantage over Democrat John Kerry on people's trust to do a better job of protecting the country, 53 percent to 37 percent.

Poll results are available here.

Two weeks ago we wrote about a strange episode in New York involving former Enron CEO and now federal defendant Jeffrey Skilling, who was taken by police to a hospital after exhibiting some paranoid behavior:

Former Enron CEO Jeffrey Skilling was taken to a hospital early Friday after several people called police saying he was pulling on their clothes and accusing them of being FBI agents, a police source told The Associated Press.

The Houston Chronicle now reports prosecutors have charged Skilling violated the terms of his bond in New York:

Federal prosecutors say ex-Enron CEO Jeff Skilling violated his $5 million bond in New York City earlier this month by being severely intoxicated, trying to lift a woman's blouse looking for an FBI wiretap and attempting to steal a car license plate, according to a document filed in court today. Prosecutors want U.S. District Judge Sim Lake to consider further restrictions on Skilling as he awaits trial -- but don't say whether they want Skilling jailed or whether they will ask that some or all of his bond be forfeited.

We don't think Skilling's bond or liberty are in jeopardy at this point. It's more likely the Judge will add some new conditions, like alcohol or mental health treatment.

Skilling's lawyers previously told reporters that Skilling and his wife were attacked by two men who knocked her down and rendered her unconscious. The government's report indicates Skilling started the disturbance and admitted at the hospital that he accidentally knocked down his wife himself.

Apparently, Skilling still has lots of bucks. Not only did he post a $5 million bond, but while in New York, he stayed at the Four Seasons where the standard room rate is between $575 and $750 a night.

We received this by email:

Thanks to the release of Bush and Kerry's Vietnam-era military records, we now know more than we ever thought we'd needed to know about the condition of their buttocks.

John Kerry suffered multiple sharpnel wounds to his buttocks when an enemy mine detonated near his swift boat. Despite the wounds and intense sniper fire from both riverbanks, Kerry rescued a fellow soldier who had fallen overboard and earned a Bronze Star for his valor.

George Bush developed a hemorrhoid while flying a Texas Air National Guard jet to protect the shores of South Padre Island.

Is there any doubt about whose buttocks should be in the Oval Office on January 21, 2005?

The Revealer, a blog about religion and the press, continues to provide a daily collage of religion news from the war in Iraq. Today's feature is on Muqtada Al-Sadr, about whom the Revealer says:

Sadr sounds here like a kind of trickster figure, practicing verbal rope-a-dope on American journalists who, after all, are coming to the conversation with a distinct disadvantage: Sadr may have been watching the Americans on CNN for years, while "60 Minutes II" is parachuting into a culture it doesn’t understand.

A federal judge in California has ruled Ashcroft & Co. cannot prosecute medical marijuana clubs that provide pot to sick patients:

A judge on Wednesday ordered the federal government not to raid or prosecute a California group that grows and distributes marijuana for its sick members.The decision from U.S. District Judge Jeremy Fogel in San Jose was the first interpretation of an appeals court's December ruling that federal prosecutions of medical marijuana users are unconstitutional if the pot isn't sold, transported across state lines or used for non-medicinal purposes. Nine states, including California, allow medical marijuana use, but the Justice Department contends that federal drug laws take precedence.

Fogel ruled that the federal government cannot raid or prosecute the 250 members of the Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana, which sued the government after the Drug Enforcement Administration in 2002 raided its Santa Cruz County growing operation and seized 167 marijuana plants....The marijuana group asked Fogel to issue the injunction after the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in December ordered the federal government not to prosecute a sick Oakland woman who smoked marijuana with a doctor's recommendation. A 1996 California law allows people to grow, smoke or obtain marijuana for medical needs with a doctor's recommendation.

States with similar laws: Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Nevada, Oregon and Washington. All except Colorado and Maine are in the 9th Circuit.