Is Texas Still Executing the Innocent?

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This month Texas executed 67 year-old Lester Bower after 31 years on Death Row.  Bower, a devout Baptist, husband and father of two  daughters had never been in the slightest bit of legal trouble when he was arrested, tried and convicted for allegedly killing 4 men in an aircraft hangar on a ranch near Sherman.  The prosecution’s theory was that he killed the men to cover up his theft of a $3000 ultralight aircraft.  Bower appears to have been in the wrong place shortly before the wrong time and compounded his problem by foolishly attempting to keep his wife from learning about buying the aircraft. Many now think that there is no way that Bower would have been convicted if the current evidence had been available at trial. Several witnesses have came forward to implicate four other men for the killings which probably occurred as a result of a drug deal gone bad.  But without clear and convincing evidence of actual innocence, Bower was out of luck and on the wrong side of the legal system.   Politico reports on the most recent execution of another possibly innocent man.

Leticia Van de Putte – Now a Two Time Loser

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The Democrats somehow managed to blow the mayoral race in San Antonio this weekend.  The Texas Tribune looks at what went wrong for the down-trodden Texas Democratic Party.  Although, the race was technically non-partisan, the lines were clearly drawn and Ivy Taylor, the interim mayor won the runoff election with 51.7 percent of the vote.

Today in Texas History – June 15

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From the Annals of the Race Riots –  In 1943, an estimated 3,000 people marched on Beaumont City Hall after workers at the Pennsylvania Shipyard learned that a white woman had accused a black man of rape.  Some 2000 workers and another 1000 hangers on surrounded City Hall. The woman involved could not identify the suspect among the black men held in the city jail.  That did not deter the mob which dispersed into smaller bands and began breaking into stores in the black section of downtown Beaumont and terrorizing black neighborhoods in central and north Beaumont.  Many in the mob carried guns, knives, axes and other weapons which they used to assault any black they could find.  Several restaurants and stores were pillaged, a number of buildings were burned, and more than 100 homes were ransacked.  Authorities arrested more than 200 people.  Another fifty persons were injured, and three–two blacks and one white–were killed.  Ultimately, martial law was declared with troops entering the city after most of the rioting had ceased.

The riot was the result of increasing racial tension caused by the rapid expansion of the city’s population during the World War II boom.  The city was unprepared for the influx of workers and the strict segregation of the races had broken down because of inadequate housing, transportation and the need for workers in the wartime industries.  Blacks were being put into to skilled labor positions which aggravated the white racists.

In addition to these factors, southeast Texas was a hotbed of Ku Klux Klan activity and the local chapter was planning to host a regional convention on June 29.  It was expected that they would attract 15,000 to 20,000 of their fellow racist scum from all over the South to hear Imperial Wizard William J. Simmons speak. The Klan meeting was widely reported and aggravated existing racial tensions.  And at the same time, the black community was preparing for its annual Juneteenth celebration, scheduled for Saturday, June 19, when hundreds of East Texas blacks were expected to come to Beaumont.

Yes, not all race riots were started by minorities.

Photo from beaumontenterprise.com.

Today in Texas History – June 12

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From the Annals of Killing – In 1901, Gregorio Lira Cortez shot and killed Karnes County sheriff W. T. Morris.  Morris was investigating a horse theft and learned that Cortez had recently acquired a horse.  He confronted Cortez and his brother Ronaldo and their tenant farm.  Problems with translation led to Morris shooting and wounding Ronaldo.  Cortez then shot and killed Morris escaping to a nearby farm.  When the Gonzales County attempted to arrest Cortez at the farm, both he and the owner were killed in a shoot out.  Cortez then walked 100 miles to a friend’s home where he obtained a horse and made out for Laredo.  The ensuing manhunt involved over 300 men, but Cortez was only captured when he was betrayed by a friend.  With many newspapers  covering the massive manhunt, Cortez became a hero to many Hispanics and some Anglos.  After his arrest and first trial, a mob attempted to lynch Cortez while his case was on appeal.  The lynching failed but the appeal was successful.  Cortez was tried again and sentenced to life.  Cortez was finally granted a conditional pardon by Gov. Oscar Colquitt and released in 1913. Cortez’s escape, the massive manhunt and capture and trials made Cortez something of a folk hero. His exploits are celebrated in many variants of El Corrido de Gregorio Cortez, a popular ballad that has inspired books and at least one movie.

Not too Friendly in Frenship

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The racists are coming out of the woodwork in the aftermath of the McKinney pool party incident.  The San Antonio Express-News reports on one sad example of an elementary school teacher who just couldn’t keep her mouth shut.

A teacher at an elementary school near Lubbock has been fired after writing she was “almost to the point” of supporting racial segregation following a controversial police incident in McKinney.

Frenship Independent School District officials have fired Karen Fitzgibbons, a fourth-grade teacher at Bennett Elementary School in Wolfforth, for making the controversial post, the district announced in a statement Thursday.

“Frenship ISD is deeply disappointed in the thoughtlessness conveyed by this employee’s post,” the release said. “We find these statements to be extremely offensive, insensitive, and disrespectful to our Frenship community and citizens everywhere. These comments in no way represent the educational environment we have created for our students.”

Tar Balls on Texas Beaches – Not so Mysterious

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ABC News reports that mysterious tar balls have been washing up on Texas beaches.  Just how often do these folks go to the beach?  In Red’s experience tar balls at the Texas coast are not that unusual.

We don’t have a source for the oil,” Jim Suydam, a spokesman for the Texas General Land Office, told ABC News today, noting that samples of the substance have been sent to the U.S. Coast Guard for analysis. So far, their only conclusion is that it is a “crude oil product” that came from “two different sources.”

“It is unlikely the source is from Texas waters, but possible sources include offshore rigs, a pipeline, a ship, or from natural seepage,” Suydam told ABC News in a statement.

Tar balls are dense accumulations of hydrocarbons that have been mixed and rolled with sand and shells before washing ashore. The source could be natural leaks along the continental shelf, which runs 40 to 100 miles off the Texas shoreline, or the result of frequent spills that occur when crude oil is transported from one tanker to another in the Gulf of Mexico before being brought into port.

If the investigation proves the oil came from man-made sources, it will come as no surprise to Luke Metzer, director of Environment Texas, an environmental advocacy group based out of Austin.

“Oil spills are a way of life here in Texas,” Metzer said, noting that 543 spills occurred in 2012, according to the Texas General Land Office.

“It all adds up to have a big toll on the marine life in the Gulf,” he said.

Metzer argued that Texas should establish “no-take” Marine Protected Areas, which prohibit fishing, oil drilling, and other extractive uses.

Today in Texas History – June 11

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From the Annals of Banditry –   In 1865, during the chaos following the defeat of the Confederacy, bandits broke into the office of the Texas State Treasury in Austin.  The thieves apparently targeted over $300,000 in specie and U.S. Coupons.  At the time, Austin had no police force and the thieves believed that escape would be easy.  However, Austin citizens rallied to find the bandits.  Among those involved in the hunt were volunteers from Gen. Joseph Shelby’s band of Missouri raiders who were encamped near Austin while escaping to Mexico – possibly to avoid prosecution as war criminals.  The thieves fled to Mt. Bonnell.  Several were wounded in the ensuing fight but only one was captured.

Ted Cruz – Not Ready for Primetime

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Former Oklahoma Sen. Tom Coburn assesses the GOP presidential field and does not appear to be overly impressed with either of the favorite sons from Texas.   ThinkProgress has the full report.

Rick Perry: “Good guy. I don’t think he’s capable at that level.”

Ted Cruz: “Not ready for primetime.”

Is Mark Levin a Rascist, a Moron or Merely a Lying Scumbag?

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Red has intentionally avoided joining in the chorus of voices regarding this week’s incident at the pool party in McKinney.  But then Red inadvertently hit upon Mark Levin’s screed that poses for a radio show yesterday.  He was ranting about the injustice of the resignation of Eric Casebolt –  the McKinney police officer who was caught on camera wrestling a 15 year old girl in a bikini to the ground and then yanking out his gun and pointing it at two other black kids who had approached and then already started retreating.  Levin was desperately attempting to justify the now disgraced officer’s actions.  Levin claimed that the officer was justified in pulling out his weapon because he was confronted by “two brutes – BRUTES” – screamed into the microphone by this pathetic excuse for a commentator.    Watch the video and decide for yourself about the actions of these “BRUTES.”  They apparently respond to cries from the girl being manhandled by the officer, but as soon as the officer looks up, they move away and are rapidly leaving the area when Casebolt pulls out his gun – only to be restrained by another officer who hasn’t lost his cool.   One of the teens, Adrian Martin, was interviewed by Lawrence O’Donnell last night.   Martin, the only person arrested in the entire ordeal, was later released with all charges dropped.  If the lack of any real arrests doesn’t sway your opinion about the gross overreaction of Casebolt, then maybe O’Donnell’s interview with Martin will.  Martin, who appears to be on the slight side for a “BRUTE” is a well-spoken young man.  He indicated that he has no intent of suing the police for wrongful arrest and expressed his gratitude to the police officers who responded appropriately to the incident.  But that won’t sway the Tea Party screamers like Levin.