Judge scolded in truck deaths trial

Court overrules her order that prosecutors give reason for seeking the death penalty
By HARVEY RICE
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle
In a harshly worded opinion, a federal appeals court Wednesday accused a federal judge of "acting as quasi-defense attorney" in her attempt to punish prosecutors for failing to reveal why they sought the death penalty for a truck driver blamed in the deaths of 19 illegal immigrants.



The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered U.S. District Judge Vanessa Gilmore to abandon her demand that prosecutors show why they sought the death penalty for Tyrone Williams, 33, a Jamaican immigrant from Schenectady, N.Y.


Williams' attorney said his client was singled out for the death penalty because he is black.


"It's a total repudiation of Gilmore's order on every possible ground," said Charles "Rocky" Rhodes, a professor at the South Texas College of Law.


The court also ordered Gilmore to rescind the sanctions she imposed on the government for refusing to provide the information. If Williams were convicted, Gilmore had planned to punish prosecutors by telling the jury during the penalty phase of the trial that they had refused her order.


She also planned to allow the defense to use the prosecutors' refusal to comply with her order in its arguments to the jury.


"This combination of legislating from the bench and acting as a quasi-defense attorney vis-a-vis the jury is unprecedented," the three-judge panel said in its 22-page opinion.


The opinion also said Gilmore may have "reacted emotionally."


After the opinion was issued, Gilmore scheduled Williams' trial for Jan. 21.


Defense and prosecution attorneys are prevented from expressing opinions under a gag order imposed by Gilmore, but U.S. Attorney Michael Shelby issued a statement saying, "We will continue to move forward in our efforts to bring this matter to a just and appropriate resolution."


Circuit judges Edith H. Jones, Rhesa H. Barksdale and Edward Charles Prado said Gilmore should have punished prosecutors by removing the death penalty.


Instead, Gilmore tried to punish prosecutors "by poisoning the jury's consideration of that option with an impermissible punishment phase instruction," the judges wrote.


The judges said, "while we are loath to interfere with the manner in which a district court runs its cases," they had to take quick action because more than 200 prospective jurors had already been chosen for the trial.


The panel issued its decision a day after Williams' attorney, Craig Washington, filed a 49-page argument supporting Gilmore's orders.


David Dow, professor at the University of Houston Law Center, and Rhodes said the 5th Circuit was one of the two most conservative appeals courts and tended to favor the prosecution.


"The panel was an extremely good panel for the government," Dow said.


Dow said the 5th Circuit opinion was "effectively written to prevent Williams from delving into a race discrimination claim, but I don't think that it is well reasoned."


Rhodes said, "Yes, the 5th Circuit was certainly a little harsh on Judge Gilmore, just like she has done with the government attorneys. This is a shot across the bows of Judge Gilmore."


Relations between Gilmore and prosecutors have been frayed at times. Gilmore on occasion has been abrupt with prosecutors, once telling Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Rodriguez to "shut up."


Williams' trial had been scheduled to begin last week, but the 5th Circuit ordered the trial delayed to give prosecutors time to file their request that the appeals court overrule Gilmore.


The chain of events leading to the 5th Circuit order began in November when Gilmore ordered prosecutors to provide information on how they decided to seek the death penalty after Williams' attorneys said he was singled out because he is black.


When prosecutors refused, saying the information was protected by law, she asked for a letter from U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft stating that he was refusing to comply.


The government refused to supply the letter so Gilmore responded by proposing to tell jurors about the refusal, prompting prosecutors to go to the 5th Circuit. The appeals court said Gilmore lacked authority to order a letter from Ashcroft.


Williams is accused of refusing to turn on the refrigeration or to stop and release at least 74 undocumented immigrants he was smuggling in the back of his truck even as temperatures soared and air grew scarce.


The bodies of 17 immigrants were found in his abandoned trailer May 14, 2003, at a truck stop near Victoria. Two more died at a hospital.


Of 14 people indicted last year in connection with the deaths, two were convicted in December, one was acquitted by Gilmore, five pleaded guilty, four are awaiting trial in Mexico City on immigrant smuggling charges and one is awaiting trial in Houston.

Those of us who have been in the courtroom long enough have all seen it. An otherwise normal person, upon taking the bench, becomes--to use the proper medical term--a Class A Spincter. His head becomes so swollen by his ego and self-importance, that he has difficulty in getting it in the front door of the courthouse, without the help of a shoe-horn. In the latter stages of the disease (and unfortunately, the latter stage can last an entire career) the patient becomes so delusional that he thinks he is exempted from the normal rules of civil behavior, as he barks orders, and growls at anyone who causes the slightest annoyance.

In the past, there was little anyone could do with people afflicted with this dredded problem. But today, thanks to the advance of modern psycotropic medications, there is hope. But more needs to be done. Send your contributions to: The Judgitis Relief Foundation, 85 Baines Ave., NY, NY, 123456.
Let's all work together so we can end this problem in our life-times.

Thank you.

To quote Larry the Cable Guy, "I don't care who you are, that's funny right there!"

Judgitis, what a concept.

Terry, our Creator broke the mold after he made you... but keep up the postings! You really should write a book.

Sadly, it appears that Judge Gilmore will have to find other cases in which to skew the scales of justice:

Truck driver faces new trial in 2003 smuggling deaths
Appeals court removes Houston judge from case

May 11, 2006
Houston Chronicle

The truck driver accused in the smuggling deaths of 19 illegal immigrants must stand trial a second time on all 58 counts for which he originally was tried, including those that carry a possible death sentence, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.

In overturning a decision by U.S. District Judge Vanessa Gilmore, a three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals also ordered that the Houston trial judge be removed from the case involving Tyrone Mapletoft Williams.

"I am just devastated," said Williams' attorney, Craig Washington. "I'm going to appeal to the United States Supreme Court.

"I'm probably more disappointed than I've ever been in any decision in my life," Washington said. "But it ain't over."

* * *

Wednesday's order is the third time the 5th Circuit Court has overturned Gilmore's rulings after appeals by the U.S. Attorney's Office. Gilmore could not be reached for comment.

* * *
The full article is at: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/3855584.html