Friday, June 23, 2006

Did this man die...for this man's crime?

On Dec 7, 1989, Carlos De Luna was executed in Texas for a murder in Corpus Christi. But a Chicago Tribune investigation has uncovered evidence he was not the killer:

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According to NBC Nightline there were no finger prints or any physical evidence at the
crime scene and Carlos DeLuna was executed based on a false eye witness testimony. The
possible killer is another man named Carlos who bragged many times about the murder and later died in prison.

Tomorrow ABC Weekly Edition is going to have a more detailed report.
Chicago Tribune is going to publish the article starting this Sunday. They have posted a short video preview of the story online.

Carlos in his last statement said, "I want to say I hold no grudges. I hate no
one. I love my family. Tell everyone on death row to keep the faith and don’t
give up."

This breaking news comes two years after The Chicago Tribune reported in November 2004 that Cameron Willingham was also probably innocent despite being executed by Texas in 2004. Willingham had been sentenced to death for an arson fire that killed his three daughters. Willingham’s last words were: "I am an innocent man, convicted of a crime I did not commit," Willingham said angrily. "I have been persecuted for 12 years for something I did not do."

In November 2005, The Houston Chronicle reported that Ruben Cantu, who was executed by Texas in 1993, was also probably innocent. Sam Millsap, Bexar Co. district attorney at the time of Cantu's conviction – has said that he was the man "who is at least partially responsible for the execution of the 1st innocent man in the State of Texas”.

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