Political India: Engaging America

The United States Supreme Court has blocked the state of Texas from carrying out the execution of Duane Buck, an African-American man convicted of murder, on the grounds that a psychologist expert witness at his trial introduced racist bias into the case before sentencing.

The highest court in the land has dealt a severe blow not only to the legitimacy of the trial process in Texas, which executes more inmates than any other U.S. state, but also to the political capital of Texas Governor and 2012 presidential hopeful Rick Perry.

Mr. Perry was earlier refused a petition by the legal team of Mr. Buck to approve a 30-day reprieve on the execution after it emerged that testifying psychologist Walter Quijano had told the jury at Mr. Buck’s sentencing hearing that “he was a danger to the public because he is black... [and that] that black people posed a greater risk to violent reoffending if released from jail.”

In 2000, that testimony was criticised even by erstwhile Attorney General and current Senator John Cornyn, who conceded that Mr. Buck’s case and those five others had been “unconstitutionally tainted by the racial testimony” of Mr. Quijano. The other five men were said to have received new sentencing trials – and all were re-sentenced to death.

According to reports Kate Black, Mr. Buck's lawyer, said after the Supreme Court’s decision, “No one should be put to death based on the colour of his or her skin. We are confident that the court will agree that our client is entitled to a fair sentencing hearing that is untainted by considerations of his race.”

Labels: African-Americans, Duane Buck execution, Duane Buck trial