The Texas Criminal Court of Appeals cited stunning allegations of prosecutorial misconduct that led to Cook spending 20 years on death row.
Former death row inmates Kerry Max Cook and Sakae Menda, of Japan, attend a press conference during the First World Congress Against the Death Penalty on June 21, 2001 in Strasbourg, France.We’re testing using AI-powered tools to provide an audio version of this story. While this audio recording is machine-generated, the story was written by human journalists.
“This case is riddled with allegations of State misconduct that warrant setting aside Applicant’s conviction,” Judge Bert Richardson wrote in the majority opinion. “And when it comes to solid support for actual innocence, this case contains it all — uncontroverted Brady violations, proof of false testimony, admissions of perjury and new scientific evidence.”
Prosecutors in Smith County, in East Texas, accused Cook of the 1977 rape, murder and mutilation of 21-year-old Edwards. Cook’s first conviction in 1978 was overturned. A second trial in 1992 ended in a mistrial and a third in 1994 concluded with a new conviction and death sentence. The Court of Criminal Appeals reversed the second verdict in 1996, stating that misconduct by police and prosecutors had tainted the case from the start.
Texas Politics Texas Policy Texas Government Criminal Justice
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Molly Cook wins Houston-based Texas Senate seatCook was up 74 votes, according to unofficial results.
Read more »
Molly Cook holds on to Houston-based Texas Senate seat in Democratic primary runoffCook was up 74 votes, according to unofficial results.
Read more »
Molly Cook holds on to Houston-based Texas Senate seat in Democratic primary runoffCook was up 74 votes, according to unofficial results.
Read more »
Texas Rangers Catcher Pitches Well For 2nd Time, Max Scherzer Ribs Mets Pete AlonsoTexas Rangers backup catcher Andrew Knizner was forced to pitch in relief for the second time in a week, and he again held the opponent to multiple scoreless innings.
Read more »
Max Scherzer’s next start will be for the Texas RangersScherzer’s exact return date, though, has not yet been finalized.
Read more »
Texas Rangers Notebook: Max Scherzer Expected To Rejoin Rotation Against Kansas CityMax Scherzer is expected to return to the Texas Rangers rotation against the Kansas City Royals this weekend.
Read more »