Marsha Richard, the wife of an executed prisoner, filed a lawsuit yesterday against Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Sharon Keller. Richard claims that Judge Keller violated her husband's rights by refusing to keep the state's highest criminal court open after regular court hours so that his lawyers could file yet another appeal on the day of the execution. The lawsuit is, unsurprisingly, asking for money.I'm afraid that this Associated Press story (used almost exclusively in the nationwide coverage of the matter) gives a garbled and biased version of the affair, one that is definitely sympathetic to the lawyers without doing a very good job of explaining the issues of the case. And it isn't until the 11th paragraph of the story (out of 14 total) that the reader learns a bit about the crime for which Michael Richard was executed -- a 1986 rape and brutal murder of Marguerite Lucille Dixon. The thug then followed up by stealing a couple of televisions and a van from the victim's house.
Oh yes, it's not until the next to last paragraph that the reader learns another weird tidbit; namely, that Mrs. Richard did not even meet her husband until he already was in prison. She met him there while visiting her brother...who happened to be on death row himself.
Goodnight, America.
Well, for the record, here's what a responsible reporter would have added to this story:
Marguerite Lucille Dixon, a registered nurse, was the mother of 7 grown children and living in Hockley, Texas (near Houston) when Michael Richard was paroled from prison. It was his second stint in prison. The first time was for burglary where he served just over half of a six-year sentence. The second time around, Richards was given a five-year sentence when convicted of theft, auto-theft, and forgery. He served less than 18 months of that sentence.
Two months after getting out, on August 18, 1986, Richard approached Marguerite's son outside her home and asked if a van that was parked in the driveway was for sale. When the son told Richard that the van was not for sale, Richard left but watched the home until he saw Marguerite's son and daughter leave a short time later.
Richard returned to Marguerite's house and forced his way in. He forced Marguerite into a bedroom where he sexually assaulted her before shooting her in the head with a 25-caliber pistol. After the rape and murder, Richard stole two televisions and the van. He later traded the murder weapon for cocaine. His fingerprint was found on a sliding glass door in Marguerite's home. Richard later confessed to the murder but claimed the gun discharged accidentally.
Giving these details certainly gives a different "spin" to the issue, doesn't it? So, when do you think we'll see the MSM start to give a little bit of the relevant background on these kinds of cases? Yeah, I agree.
