‘Allgood’s practices perverted justice’
We often forget that in the court of law, we are all entitled to the same basic rights afforded to us by the Constitution. Guilty or innocent, an accused person has the right to a fair, impartial trial. Violating those rights in any way whether or not it leads to a conviction, regardless of circumstance, is an injustice. Period.
On his “Re-elect Forrest Allgood” Facebook page, DA Allgood still insists on attacking my innocence and deferring his accountability to his former assistants and myself. He may toss around blame and accusations all he wants, yet the undeniable fact of the matter is this:
On May 10, 2007, the Supreme Court ruled that by withholding evidence from the jury and knowingly presenting scientifically unfounded evidence to the jury, DA Allgood’s practices perverted justice and violated my constitutional right to a fair and impartial trial.
There are no if, ands, buts, “I didn’t personally try the case, two of my assistant’s did” or excuses about it. DA = Head of Office. Assistant DA = Under the Direction of DA. It was and still is his responsibility.
My case along with Butler v. State of Mississippi, Brewer v. State of Mississippi, and most recently, Newell v State of Mississippi (which was just remanded for retrial for the THIRD time), are just a few examples of cases where DA Allgood’s permanent bad habits shined. Allgood and his bad habits are sending innocent people to prison, costing the taxpayers unnecessary expenses in multiple retrials of both the innocent and guilty, and perverting true justice while wreaking havoc on people’s lives.
Justice is responsibility, accountability, transparency, honesty and integrity on all fronts. Justice is a system of processes, and like any other system, certain components must be replaced from time to time in order to adapt to the current needs of the system. Crime is increasing, DA Allgood’s erroneous and overzealous prosecutorial practice has proven itself as ineffective, ultimately destructive and counterproductive. It’s apparent now more than ever that some components of our system must be changed.
Einstein once said “Repeating the same mistakes and expecting a different result is the very definition of insanity.” Before you cast your vote, ask yourself what’s really changed in the 26 years DA Allgood has been in office.
Tyler Edmonds
West Palm Beach, Florida
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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