![]() ![]() I don’t believe asking victims’ families “why they are out for blood” is serving anything other than to cause more trauma and victimization. Unfortunately, some of these campaigns work. The damage of such nonsense is far reaching. These actions routinely retraumatize the families and survivors of these victims. The victims’ voices, once the most important and crucial voices, are now drowned by those in places of privilege who overwhelm, intimidate and victim shame as they seek to trivialize the harm that has befallen them. Oh, so what if one murderer is turned loose after being convicted by a jury of his peers and had the conviction upheld in multiple appeals? Not only can this result in a released murderer living next door to your family, but also equates to torture for the victims’ families. Instead, they simply take the word of the defendant’s publicists or lawyers. These “selfless” do-gooders work to convince the public they are better qualified to evaluate evidence and decide guilt or innocence than are lifetime prosecutors, criminal justice experts, judges and even juries who have evaluated hours of testimony. In reality, celebrity criminal justice promoters may not have read any of the transcripts, attended any hearings, talked to the prosecutors or investigated the claims. Unfortunately, they have created regular circus events in Oklahoma’s death penalty cases, most recently in the cases of convicted murderers Richard Glossip and Julius Jones. These reality TV, billionaire, daytime TV and sports stars want their audiences to believe they are compassionate and trustworthy, but what they are really doing is being self-appointed judges and juries. Phil and Virgin Airlines billionaire Richard Branson are a few top contributors in a charade of unsubstantiated claims, red herrings and cherry picking in attempts to cause doubt in the factual findings that resulted in a guilty verdict. We have done nothing wrong, and it almost feels like we are doing something wrong by speaking out.In today’s America, high-profile celebrities often take to social media platforms where they tout false narratives and even outright lies as to the crime surrounding the convict they are advocating for. Kim Kardashian, Dr. He was murdered in front of me and my sister and my aunt. Howell told Villarreal, "He was an innocent man, taking his kids to get ice cream with my aunt. Jones' clemency hearing is the first time she'll actually get to confront the man convicted of killing her father. They asked him multiple times if he is waiving his right to testify, and he's agreed, he did not want to testify." ![]() You can find it in the transcripts, if you do the research. "Julius Jones and his family and their supporters claim that he did not get the opportunity to testify in court," said Howell. "There's a lot of misinformation around this case," she said, "and the public has been given a false narrative about this case. Rachel Howell was nine years old when her father was killed, and was with him that day. Since the documentary aired, Jones' case has received attention from celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Stephen Curry. Because they knew someone was going to fry for this." "But where I grew up, you're not supposed to be telling other people's business because bad things can happen to you. "I mean, this is probably my greatest downfall, that I never said anything to the police," Jones said. Jones spoke to the film crew from jail saying he regretted not saying it was Jordan who committed the crime. Jordan was convicted of murder for driving the getaway car in Howell's death, but he has allegedly admitted to at least three others that he shot Howell and framed Jones. They also say race played a role, pointing to a White juror and the officer who arrested him allegedly calling Jones the N-word.Ī 2018 documentary about Jones, "The Last Defense," focused on evidence attorneys did not present at court about Christopher Jordan. They say his public defender was inexperienced and didn't cross-examine witnesses. Before we ate spaghetti and cornbread, we were playing Monopoly."įor years the family has asserted neither Jones nor his family were allowed to testify about critical details because his defense team was inadequate. "Because I know where my brother was that night of the murder of Mr. Villarreal asked Antoinette, "What makes you so sure they have the wrong person?" His family says eyewitness descriptions don't match Julius, who at the time had a shaved head. Three days later, 19-year-old Julius Jones was arrested at his home. His SUV was stolen, and witnesses reported seeing a Black man with a red bandana and 1-2 inches of hair shoot the father of two. ![]() On July 28, 1999, Paul Howell was murdered outside his parents' home in front of his family. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |