Questions Surround Ronald Bell Conviction
by TChris
Is Ronald Bell another innocent man on death row? A week after a jewelry store robbery that left the manager dead, Ronald's brother was found in possession of a ring from the store. Ronald resembled his brother, explaining why witnesses might have mistakenly identified Ronald as the killer. The brother had an alibi, conveniently supplied by his girlfriend, but they weren't in church together during the robbery:
The two had spent the afternoon and evening together, she claimed, shooting cocaine at the lovely Sea Horse Motel, which rents rooms by the hour.
The first jury hung, and the second was barely able to return a verdict. The California Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, "although Justice Stanley Mosk issued a blistering dissent in which he blamed prosecutorial misconduct for tipping the case against the accused."
Bell's prosecutor was Gary Yancey, who went on to become Contra Costa's elected district attorney. Yancey suggested to the jury that Bell's own lawyer believed he was guilty. He also snuck in inadmissible hearsay from a secret informant who claimed to have seen Bell cleaning a handgun before the crime.
More recently, evidence has surfaced that one of the witnesses who fingered Bell bragged about getting him the death penalty because she thought he deserved a more severe punishment for an earlier crime. Then a second witness admitted that she'd been convinced to lie.
"Over the years, it has weighed on my conscience that Ronnie Bell is on death row because of our lies," her statement read. "I no longer want him to die."
She has since recanted the recantation, raising doubts about whether she was ever a credible witness. Next week Contra Costa County Superior Court Judge Thomas Maddock will hold an evidentiary hearing to try to sort out the varying stories. His findings may help decide whether Bell should be freed from death row after 26 years.
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