How noble of the Supreme Court, to actually deign to involve themselves in determining if an innocent man is scheduled to executed....
High court to weigh DNA in death row case
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- When the US Supreme Court hears arguments tomorrow in the case of convicted killer Paul House, it will be the first time a death row inmate has brought DNA evidence before the high court to prove his innocence. ... House, 44, has been on Tennessee's death row for 20 years, convicted of murdering Carolyn Muncey, a young mother who lived near him in rural Luttrell, about 25 miles north of Knoxville, in 1985.There were no witnesses to the crime and House maintains he did not do it.
The high court will hear arguments on whether DNA evidence and other new claims in House's case are so compelling that he deserves a chance at a new trial.
The prosecution found semen on the victim, and experts suggested at the time that it came from House, but new DNA evidence showed it was from Muncey's husband.
The prosecution also found the victim's blood on House's pants, but DNA analysis suggested that a forensic sample of the blood may have been spilled on the pants after the slaying.
...House's defense team has produced several witnesses who say that the victim's husband, Hubert Muncey, was known to have hit his wife and confessed to killing her. Muncey, who still lives in Union County, has maintained his innocence.
...House has said he has no confidence in the judicial system.''I didn't kill her,“ he told The Associated Press last year in a prison interview. ''I haven't studied law books and all that crap. I'm not interested in the law, not after I've been burned by it. I couldn't care less.”
Tags: Death_Penalty, /judicial_activism, /DNA
