On April 22nd, 2005, Federal District Judge Marilyn L. Huff in San Diego denied in full my petition of innocence, "and all the other claims for relief within it."
After almost a year of unfair hearings, in which state witnesses lied, a jailhouse informant recanted his recantation, and one-sided testing by the state on a T-shirt took place, this judge has once again helped the state to get me one step closer to the death chamber here at San Quentin Prison.
While there is no doubt that by law my attorneys proved that the state withheld exculpatory evidence at the time of my trial-as well as proving that they are still withholding evidence, tampering with evidence, lying about evidence, intimidating at least one witness and stopping others from coming forward to testify-according to Judge Huff I deserve no relief. Under her law, all that and more is permissible!
But to top that off, this conservative right-wing Republican activist judge who was appointed to the bench by the first President Bush did something that has never been done before in a federal court hearing concerning innocence and constitutional rights violations. She invited the families of the victims and one of the victims to speak!
This "victim impact statement" was allowed even though this was not a sentencing hearing, or a parole hearing, or a clemency hearing. In order to justify her actions, Judge Huff first cited the Justice For All Act that Congress passed in 2004. But she then had to admit that this law is not directly or even indirectly applicable to the court proceeding in my hearing on innocence and constitutional rights violations.
Just as important as that fact is this fact: That Act is, not applicable to any public hearing or proceeding in a federal district court! So this judge used a law that was not applicable, and that she knew was not applicable, to give the media one more opportunity to generate negative press about the case. Where is the justice in this?
Judge Huff claims to be protecting the interests of the victims' families. In fact, her actions forced them to relive their nightmare over again for no reason-not only is victims' testimony not applicable to this type of hearing, but I did not commit the crime. So Judge Huff is not helping the victims' families at all. She is just manipulating them to hurt my case.
And what about my family? They are victims in this as well, yet they weren't invited to speak. My son lost his father for over 20 years, and my mother and father lost their son, and my sister her brother!! And they will lose me all over again if the state is able to go through with this unjust execution.
The type of justice that I and my family received at the hands of this judge is outright disgusting! This type of justice is what happened to men like Dred Scott!! As well as millions of untold others. I was told that those days were over. I guess I was once again lied to.
In struggle from death row at San Quentin Prison,
Kevin Cooper