The SCOTUS has denied Brandon Bernard’s petition and this unjust execution will move forward now. Justices Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan would have granted a stay. Justice Sotomayor published a six-page dissent that lays out many of the legal reasons why this execution is wrong.
Justice Sotomayor details serious misconduct committed by federal prosecutors in Brandon Bernard’s case. Prosecutors knowingly presented false testimony and covered up evidence.
Prosecutors claimed at trial that Brandon Bernard was a ringleader in a gang. Before Brandon’s trial, a police officer investigator gave the prosecutors a pyramid chart showing that Brandon was actually at the bottom of any gang hierarchy. Prosecutors covered up that evidence.
The Fifth Circuit refused to even consider Brandon’s appeal regarding this serious misconduct. The judges claimed that death-sentenced prisoners only get one chance to challenge their sentence unless new evidence is discovered.
As Justice Sotomayor bluntly put it, “the Fifth Circuit got it wrong.” The rule concocted by the judges goes against Supreme Court precedent and rewards rogue prosecutors. How can a person challenge their sentence based on withheld evidence that remains hidden?
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