Session Information
AALNC 2008 National Educational Conference
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105: Tearing Down the Gallows - The Troubling Case of the State of Delaware v. James Riley
Track
:
Case Analysis Development
Program Code:
105
Date:
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Time:
2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
EST
Location:
Meeting Room 8
SPEAKER
:
Description
Learning Objectives:
1. Explain the importance of a global review of a defendant's life and history in preparing a mitigation case.
2. Discuss the importance of changing mental status and the "aging out" phenomena.
James Riley was first condemned to death during the early 1980s when racial tensions in Dover were common. At the time, Delaware's sole method of execution was by hanging. After years of unsuccessful appeals and a landmark ruling by the Supreme Court, Mr. Riley won a new trial when the court ruled that the prosecution had improperly excluded African-Americans from the jury. During the second trial, Mr. Riley represented himself with assistance of stand-by counsel. He was acquitted of intentional murder but still faced the death penalty for felony-murder. Mr. Riley's counsel, with the assistance of a forensic psychologist, was able to spare his client a death sentence by a thorough review of more than 30 boxes of investigative materials and 25 years of prison records demonstrating his client's changing mental health status and the phenomena of "aging out."
Mr. Gabay will explain the importance of a global review of a defendant's life and history in preparing a mitigation case and explain how "bad" evidence may actually be good for the client. Additionally, he will discuss the effects of culture on a criminal trial and participants will learn the importance of changing mental status and the "aging out" phenomenon.
1. Explain the importance of a global review of a defendant's life and history in preparing a mitigation case.
2. Discuss the importance of changing mental status and the "aging out" phenomena.
James Riley was first condemned to death during the early 1980s when racial tensions in Dover were common. At the time, Delaware's sole method of execution was by hanging. After years of unsuccessful appeals and a landmark ruling by the Supreme Court, Mr. Riley won a new trial when the court ruled that the prosecution had improperly excluded African-Americans from the jury. During the second trial, Mr. Riley represented himself with assistance of stand-by counsel. He was acquitted of intentional murder but still faced the death penalty for felony-murder. Mr. Riley's counsel, with the assistance of a forensic psychologist, was able to spare his client a death sentence by a thorough review of more than 30 boxes of investigative materials and 25 years of prison records demonstrating his client's changing mental health status and the phenomena of "aging out."
Mr. Gabay will explain the importance of a global review of a defendant's life and history in preparing a mitigation case and explain how "bad" evidence may actually be good for the client. Additionally, he will discuss the effects of culture on a criminal trial and participants will learn the importance of changing mental status and the "aging out" phenomenon.
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