Even if one is “pro death penalty,” some cases simply cry out for a different form of justice, if only to protect the integrity of the justice system itself.
The Teleguz case in Virginia is just such a case where justice requires that the Governor step in and commute the death penalty to life in prison. Here’s a snip of an op-ed I wrote for CNSNews.com. I am glad they carried the important message.
“We owe every Defendant a fair trial, and we owe every jury reliable evidence and a process in which they can trust when asked to take a man’s life. Imagine convicting a man and sentencing him to death only later to learn two witnesses on whom you relied recanted their testimony. Imagine further that you find out that you gave the death penalty to the same convicted criminal based on incorrect facts the prosecution gave you in the penalty phase.”
Read the entire work … here.
UPDATE: On April 20, 2017, Governor McAuliffe commuted Mr. Teleguz’s sentence … in the name of justice.
Author: Richard Kelsey
Richard Kelsey is the Editor-in-Chief of Committed Conservative.
He is a trial Attorney and author of a #11 best-selling book on Amazon written on higher education, “Of Serfs and Lords: Why College Tuition is Creating a Debtor Class”
Rich is also the author of the new Murder-Mystery series, “The ABC’s of Murder,” book one is titled, “Adultery.”
Rich is a former Assistant Law School Dean and Law Professor. At Mason Law Kelsey conceived of, planned, and brought to fruition Mason’s Center for the Protection of Intellectual Property, known as CPIP, drawing on his expertise as a former CEO of a technology company specializing in combating cyber-fraud.
In 2014 he was elected by the graduating class as the faculty speaker at their graduation.
He is a regular commentator on legal and political issues in print, radio and on TV. Rich has appeared on hundreds of stations as a legal expert or political commentator. He provided the legal analysis for all stages of the Bob McDonnell trial and appeal for numerous outlets including NPR and WMAL.
Rich also writes on occasion for the American Spectator and CNSNews.com.
In his free time, Rich is part of the baseball mafia of Northern Virginia, serving on numerous boards and as a little league and travel baseball coach.
His Twitter handle is @richkelsey.
