Howard Willis was sentenced to death in 2010 for the murders of teenage newlyweds, 17-year-old Adam Chrismer and 16-year-old Samantha Leming Chrismer.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A Tennessee man on death row who was forced to act as his own lawyer is seeking a new trial, claiming multiple violations of his constitutional rights.
Representing himself at trial, Willis claimed that he was set up and that there was no evidence tying him to the murder weapon. The jury found otherwise and sentenced him to death. As for the other attorneys, Willis had legitimate complaints about their work, his new petition argues. One attorney spent only nine hours reading the discovery material in the case between his appointment at the end of May 2005 and his withdrawal three months later.
“The record clearly indicates that petitioner abused the dignity of the court by attempting to manipulate the court in order to delay or disrupt a trial,” the state’s response said. “If the petitioner was prejudiced ... the State would contend it was the direct result of his own calculated behavior.”
Willis’ belief that the confession was obtained illegally — and should have been thrown out — was a major point of conflict with his attorneys. He felt they were not doing enough to get the confession tossed. For instance, they never called his New York attorney to testify.
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