The opinion was issued in the case of James Skinner v Louisiana, which centers on a challenge of a 2001 murder conviction.
The opinion was issued in the case of, which centers on a challenge of a conviction for the 1998 murder of Eric Walber. Skinner argued that Louisiana prosecutors withheld critical exculpatory evidence and contends that his case is nearly identical toThe Supreme Court has declined to hear an appeal, leaving the lower court's decision in place.
Sotomayor filed a dissent, which was joined by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson. Sotomayor emphasized that previous rulings have allowed for the appeal, noting that"equal justice under law, the phrase engraved on the front of this Court’s building, requires that two co-defendants, convicted of the same crime, who raised essentially the same constitutional claims, receive the same answer from the courts.""Here, because the Louisiana courts refused to apply this Court’s Brady precedents, including a decision by this Court involving the very same evidence, Skinner risks spending the rest of his life in prison while Wearry walks free," Sotomayor said."Because the Court refuses to enforce its own precedents, I respectfully dissent from the denial of certiorari."Skinner and Michael Wearry were both convicted in Walber's murder. Skinner was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, while Wearry was sentenced to death. One witness at the trial was Sam Scott, an inmate at the time who contacted the police and implicated Wearry in the killing. Scott gave"many significantly different accounts of Walber’s murder," Sotomayor said in her dissent. At trial, Scott said he was with Wearry, a man named Randy Hutchinson, and two others shooting dice on the side of the road when Walber drove by. He said Wearry was losing and decided to rob Walber. Wearry and Hutchinson then ran into the street to stop Walber’s car, he said. Hutchinson pulled Walber out of the car, beat him, and shoved him into the cargo area of the car, according to Scott's testimony. The five men got into the car and drove off, making several stops along the way, Scott said. During one of the stops, Skinner got into the driver's seat and drove the group, according to the testimony. On Crisp Road, Wearry and Hutchinson removed Walber from the car and everyone got out of the car, but Skinner got back in and ran Walber over, according to the testimony. "Scott admitted at trial that he had changed his testimony many times since he first came to the police, that he had often lied in doing so, and that he was receiving a deal in exchange for his testimony," Sotomayor said. Another witness called by the state"admitted at trial that he had first told the police a different story" which did not mention Skinner, while another witness, who was Skinner's cellmate in jail,"testified that Skinner had confessed to a version of the crime much different from the one in Scott’s telling.""As with Skinner, the prosecution offered no physical evidence of guilt. Scott was the State’s 'star witness,'" Sotomayor wrote. After Wearry was convicted, capital counsel representing him in post conviction proceedings uncovered"significant evidence that the prosecution had not disclosed," including police records and medical records. The Supreme Court later held that the evidence"would have undermined the prosecution and materially aided Wearry’s defense at trial." Skinner has also sought post conviction relief, alleging that evidence was unlawfully withheld in his trial as well. In June 2023, the post conviction court denied relief, holding that the"statements presented, on their face, without further evidence of credibility, are not sufficient to undermine confidence in the outcome of the trial." The Louisiana Court of Appeal and the Louisiana Supreme Court both denied review."makes resolution of Skinner’s"Alternatively, if fuller briefing and oral argument were required to explore the important question presented adequately, the Court should have granted certiorari to do so, not denied review," Sotomayor wrote.Since the Supreme Court declined to hear the case, the lower court's ruling will remain in effect. Do you have a story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have any questions about this story? Contact
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