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| Extreme Sophistry Delays Execution |
| 2005-01-30 |
| From The New York Times The execution of Michael Bruce Ross, the convicted serial killer who was scheduled to be the first person put to death in Connecticut in 45 years, was delayed hours after a conference call in which a federal judge criticized his lawyer's handling of the case. The lawyer, T. R. Paulding, announced early yesterday - little more than an hour before Mr. Ross had been scheduled to die - that "a question has been raised about a conflict of interest" that touched on his continued representation of Mr. Ross. .... The Connecticut's attorney general suggested that Mr. Paulding's conflict could mean that Mr. Ross no longer had a lawyer and that without a lawyer, he could not be put to death. "He must be represented by counsel," the attorney general, Richard Blumenthal, said in an interview. "We've said to all courts, we respect his right to counsel." .... Another lawyer involved in the case, Antonio Ponvert III, who represents Mr. Ross's father, said Mr. Paulding had spent hours talking to Mr. Ross at the prison on Friday afternoon and evening "about the need to have someone take an objective look at Mr. Ross's mental state, but he was unsuccessful." Mr. Paulding then told corrections officials that he had "serious conflict of interest issues" and that he could no longer be an advocate on Mr. Ross's behalf for the execution, Mr. Ponvert said. Mr. Ross, 45, has repeatedly expressed his willingness to die. He admitted to killing eight girls and young women in the early 1980's and raping most of his victims before he murdered them. He was first convicted in 1987 and sentenced to death for four of the killings. .... The delay in the execution and Mr. Paulding's statement at the prison came hours after he took part in a conference call with Judge Robert N. Chatigny, the chief federal judge in Connecticut. Lawyers representing Mr. Ross's father, Dan Ross, and public defenders who had represented Mr. Ross in the past listened in. The judge told Mr. Paulding, who has been working with Mr. Ross in an effort to forgo all appeals, that "you are way out on a limb." The judge also threatened to have Mr. Paulding's law license revoked if it turned out that his advice to Mr. Ross had been incomplete or inappropriate. ... In the telephone call, Judge Chatigny said he was also concerned that a move from one prison to another had affected Mr. Ross. Mr. Paulding had insisted that Mr. Ross was sincere in his wish to die and mentally competent to make the decision to stop the appeals. Opponents of the execution have said that Mr. Ross is simply masking a desire to commit suicide. .... |
| Posted by:Mike Sylwester |
| #1 Travesty of justice. ...Ross, 45, has repeatedly expressed his willingness to die. He admitted to killing eight girls and young women in the early 1980’s and raping most of his victims before he murdered them |
| Posted by: John Q. Citizen 2005-01-30 3:27:24 PM |