Thursday, February 2, 2012

Finally, at last, Record certified for accuracy

01/30/2012Record certified for accuracy  


Now let's see how long it takes the CA Supreme Court to put its stamp of approval on the record.

3 comments:

LA Curry said...

Who certifies the record? All this certifying is a little sketchy to me. It would seem to me that the court already did that since it is in that column that usually describes their actions and decisions. Thanks, Marlene

Marlene Newell said...

LaCurry, both sides certify the record, i.e, they agree the record is complete and correct. Mostly, it's the defense that has to make sure that everything they need is in there. They can't use anything in the direct appeal that is not included in that certified copy of the Record, so if they miss something, Scott's the one that will pay the price. I am shocked that it has taken so long to get the record certified. I mean come on folks, you knew this was a capital case, you knew the moment he was sentenced to death row that you'd need to provide all of this stuff. I really think CA needs a law requiring that a complete record be ready by the convicting Court within 18 months of the sentencing, and the direct appeal attorneys have 1 year to review it and request anything that is missing, and the sentencing court comply within 6 months. Or else fines are levied. This is ridiculous to drag this out for so long. What has to be included in the completed record is required by statute, and if a Court isn't smart enough to know what is needed to certify a record in a capital case, then it shouldn't be allowed to try capital cases.

LA Curry said...

Thanks, Marlene, for explaining. This part is all too fuzzy for me.

It certainly did take a long time. But, remember when we see news about the people that are exonerated or receive a new trial, no matter what state they live in, it seems to have taken years to get to that point. That is the tragedy for those later found to be innocent. Most of their life is gone and the prison where they resided while waiting for someone to finally listen probably gives and will give them nightmares for the rest of their lives. Tragic.