Texas Judge William Adams Investigated as YouTube Video Showing Man Beating Teen Girl With Belt Goes Viral

Aransas County Judge at Law William Adams is getting an international publicity boost today, but not in a good way, as a YouTube of a man beating a teenaged girl with a belt has gone viral - and media reports are that he's the man in the video.

Watch the video on YouTube here, but be prepared - this may be disturbing so think about it before you click the link:

YouTube Video Purported of Judge William Adams "Go get my belt...."

If you check the video out as it has been placed upon YouTube (downloaded on 10/27/2011), there is a description that relates the teenaged girl to be the judge's daughter, Hillary Adams.

Death Threats and a Criminal Investigation

KRIS-TV out of Corpus Christi is reporting that they contacted Miss Adams, and she confirmed the YouTube video as being something that she herself placed on the web, to spotlight what had happened to her.

KRIS-TV is also reporting that the Aransas County Courthouse is being swamped with folk calling to complain about the YouTube video and what they perceive to be the actions of a sitting Texas judge. Officials are reporting that there have been death threats against the Texas judge, and a criminal investigation has been opened.

Teenager Depicted in Video Has Been Disabled Since Birth

The YouTube video was accompanied by text (read it all at Above the Law) that states the teenager shown in the video suffers from a disability, having been born with ataxic cerebral palsy.

Ataxic cerebral palsy is a rare form of cerebral palsy that results in poor physical coordination, with victims suffering from shaky movement and problems doing things like walking or writing with a pen or pencil.

Growing Media Frenzy Over YouTube Video and Judge William Adams

The disturbing video is getting not only national media attention by also the international spotlight. This morning, the International Business Times reported that Judge Adams' phone had been disconnected (discovered, apparently, when they were trying to contact him).

Local media are hot on the story, as it breaks: KZTV has online updates, which includes a recent update where Judge William Adams speaks to their reporter about the YouTube video, confirming that he is the man that is shown in it.

Also in that story, Judge Adams relates that he's in touch with the Austin Judicial Review Board. Odds are high that he's gonna be in touch with a criminal defense attorney real soon, too.

Media Watch: Dallas Morning News Changes Its 100 Yr. Stance on Death Penalty

Today, the Dallas Morning News changed its position on the death penalty, and after 100 years the newspaper no longer supports capital punishment. Wow.

The entirety of the editorial is worth the read, but here are some excerpts in case you don't have the time:

"The year draws to a close with Texas in its familiar No. 1 place nationally in capital punishment statistics (18 of the nation's 37 executions in 2008). It has also been a year rich with examples of why this state should stop its error-prone machinery of death. ...

"For a change, discussion about flawed justice need not start in Dallas County, the nation's ground zero for DNA exonerations. Just to the north, Collin County illustrates how even a highly educated, affluent community can get it wildly wrong in the high-stakes gamble called capital punishment. ...

"There is no quick or neat fix for breakdowns in justice that range from poor technology to dishonesty among officers of the court. Dozens of DNA exonerations across the state – including the nation-leading 19 in Dallas County – have demonstrated how unreliable eyewitness testimony can be. Further, statistics indicate a disturbing arbitrariness of capital punishment, varying greatly by county. Data also show that a killer is far likelier to die for killing a white person. ...

"It's the view of this newspaper that the justice system will never be foolproof and, therefore, use of the death penalty is never justified. ...."

Read the full editorial here:

Editorial: Death penalty moratorium needed
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/editorials/stories/DN-death_29edi.State.Edition1.1eb1ec0.html

For some earlier posts on issues addressed in this editorial, see:

Crime News: Bernie Madoff Scandal Kills DNA Testing for Wrongfully Convicted
http://dallaslawyer.blogspot.com/2008/12/crime-news-bernie-madoff-scandal-kills.html

Judge Watch: Secret Love Affair Between Trial Judge and DA Stops Execution?
http://dallaslawyer.blogspot.com/2008/09/judge-watch-secret-love-affair-between.html

Crime News: Will DNA Tests Free Johnnie Lindsey on Friday?
http://dallaslawyer.blogspot.com/2008/09/crime-news-will-dna-tests-free-johnnie.html

Media Watch: Can Casey Anthony Get a Fair Trial - Part 2: Let's Compare Jennifer Hudson's Case

There's already a post here on why we should all be concerned about whether or not Casey Anthony can get a fair trial - and yes, each and every one of us should be watching this Florida media circus to see how it is impacting our rights - but let's just check in on how things are so screwy there, compared to another big media case.

American Idol and Academy-Award Winner Jennifer Hudson's Tragedy

They've just announced that Jennifer Hudson's brother-in-law has been charged with three counts of first degree murder -- and one of those murders, of course, involves the death of Jennifer Hudson's seven-year-old nephew, Julian King.

Case Against William Balfour For Killing a Child (and two others)

That's it. No nightly media recaps since the October 24th shootings. No release of video interviews of friends or family. No "document dumps."

We've seen the police scour the surrounding area, heard that they found a gun, and there's been a couple of interviews with neighbors, and that infamous call-in interview with the defendant's mother on Nancy Grace.

And, remember, this child's death had the additional media play of having a direct family connection to American Idol finalist, and Academy-Award winning star of Dreamgirls, Jennifer Hudson to give it legs.

Case Against Casey Anthony For Killing a Child

Meanwhile, in the Casey Anthony case - where there is absolutely no celebrity connection, we've got dozens of video interviews to review online. There's even audio transcripts of the questioning of the defendant if you want to hear them. And, "document dumps" have become routine -- so much so, that it feels like someone's behind schedule if there isn't a new release of the state's investigative files after about a month or so.

The amount of documents - which will be used by the State of Florida as they try Casey Anthony for the murder of her 2 year old daughter Caylee Anthony - is huge. It's in the thousands now: 700 pages were released within the past two weeks. (There were also large dumps in August and September.)

Motion for a Gag Order is Made ... by the State

Here's a clue that there may be a concern about the ability to set an unbiased jury in this case. Usually, the defense files a motion to silence things. In the Casey Anthony case, which is set for trial in early January, it's the State that wants to stop the hoopla. (Judge didn't agree with their arguments, and denied the request.)

Media Impact On the Jury Pool

Comparing the two investigations into a child's disappearance, both ending in murder charges being filed, it is readily apparent that the Casey Anthony jury pool has been given an unbelievable amount of information -- along with all sorts of spin, opinion, and just plain junk -- from the media pundits.

Can Casey Anthony get a fair trial? That answer is becoming clearer every day.

Trying this case on the television screen (which Nancy Grace essentially did on her Thanksgiving "specials" last week) insults the judicial system and harms the defendant.

It's Our Rights That Are Being Disrespected and Trampled Upon Here

Casey Anthony remains innocent until proven guilty -- something that doesn't sell airtime and is a core right being trampled on here.

A right belonging to you and me.




Sources:

CNN.COM
http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/12/02/hudson.charges/

Can Casey Anthony Get a Fair Trial - And Why We Should Care
http://dallaslawyer.blogspot.com/2008/09/crime-news-can-casey-anthony-get-fair.html

DA Watch: Legislator Promises Action to Fight Against DA's Wrongful Convictions

Well, it's good to know that someone's paying attention to the Dallas Morning News scoop on known wrongful convictions of innocent men and women by the DA here in Dallas besides a blogger or two (see this blog's October 13, 2008 post)....

State Senator Rodney Ellis Has A Plan for Laws to Fix the Eyewitness Identification Problem

State Senator Rodney Ellis (who represents District 13, covering parts of Harris and Fort Bend counties) actually wrote a column in the Dallas Morning News last month, where he promised to:

1. introduce legislation in 2009 to reduce the likelihood of an innocent person being convicted in the future with laws requiring that eyewitness identification procedures be based in science and implemented by trained law enforcement personnel;

2. introduce legislation in 2009 to pass a law that will require videotaping of custodial interrogations, arguing that this will not only stop false confessions but also false claims of police brutality as well as disclosing any deals made with informants for their testimony; and

3. introduce legislation to create an Integrity Commission within the Texas Legislature, if the Texas Criminal Justice Integrity Unit created within the Texas Judiciary (i.e., formed by Justice Barbara Hervey of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals) doesn't hit the ball out of the park in reform aimed at preventing the conviction of innocent people in this state.

What About Ellis' Proposals?

Rodney Ellis is known for advocating criminal justice reform, and he's been one of the first appointees to Justice Hervey's Integrity Unit. He's not new to the scene here, trying to grab a headline or two: this isn't Ellis's first rodeo.

And, writing a short column for the Dallas paper might not be the proper place for details on how Ellis intends to implement his ideas.

Nevertheless, an argument can be made that we already have trained law enforcement personnel that are supposed to use scientific techniques (proper lineups, not show-ups) and it's just not happening when zealots are anxious for a quick conviction.

Academics have shown that eyewitness testimony has historically resulted in more wrongful convictions than all other causes, combined (See source link, below). Good luck to Senator Ellis on finding the cure.

As for the videotaping of custodial interrogations? You don't have to watch many episodes of Law & Order to figure out that taping the formal interrogation isn't going to stop police brutality and false confessions. It's just going to move the bad stuff down the hall.


Sources:

"Rodney Ellis: Lowering odds that innocents end up in prison," Dallas Morning News, October 21, 2008
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/viewpoints/stories/DN-ellis_22edi.State.Edition1.26faf47.html

Eyewitness Identification Procedures: Recommendations for Lineups and Photospreads, Law & Human Behavior Vol. 22, No. 6 (1998)
http://www.psychology.iastate.edu/faculty/gwells/whitepaperpdf.pdf

For More Information:

DA Watch: Dallas County Prosecutors Routinely Convicted Innocent Men Using Eyewitness Testimony Known to Be Faulty
http://dallaslawyer.blogspot.com/2008/10/da-watch-dallas-county-prosecutors.html

CRIME NEWS: Can Casey Anthony Get A Fair Trial and Why We Should Care

Casey Anthony may have never set foot in our fair State of Texas, but what she's experiencing over in Orlando, Florida, is coming into our homes on a daily basis.

And that's good -- because we all need to be watching to see how Casey Anthony's rights are being respected over there in Florida. Because her loss of rights today does impact upon your rights, as well.

Your rights are only as safe as hers are.

What's This Case About?

The bottom line to the case is Casey Anthony's 3 year old daughter, Caylee, has been missing since June and mom Casey didn't report her missing until 31 days later - and then, she tagged onto a 911 call made by her mother, and the little girl's grandmother, Cindy Anthony.

Since that 911 call, Casey Anthony has been charged with child neglect, filing a false statement, and check fraud. She's out on bond in excess of $500,000 and is currently on house arrest in her parents' home, spending her days in the law offices of her attorney, Jose Baez.

What's Her Attorney Been Doing?

1. This past Thursday, Baez filed a motion seeking a court order to stop the prosecution's testing and handling of forensic evidence until the Judge can set rules on how this testing should occur. Baez is arguing that forensic testing can destroy the forensic samples, and he wants the Judge to oversee how this key evidence is tested, as well as what methods are used. Baez also wants a member of his defense team to observe the testing.

Why is Baez requesting all this -- even before his client is charged with anything BASED upon this evidence? He's urging that this court oversight is needed to protect Anthony's right to a fair trial.

Of course, pundits are critical of Baez's motion (just listen over at Nancy Grace) because this type of motion usually isn't filed until the client has been charged with something correlated to the forensic testing. The soil and carpet samples from her car, much less the air (yes, air) from the car's trunk, presumably connect to some type of murder charge - not the current charges that Anthony is facing.

Still, given what Baez has already seen, his motion isn't a surprise ....

2. Baez filed a Motion to Decrease the Half-Million Dollar Bail earlier, and not only was that denied by the trial court but the appellate courts upheld the bond amount. Remember, excessive bail is prohibited by the U.S. Constitution and Casey Anthony is only charged with two things in connection with this bond amount: child neglect and giving false information to the police. This is an extremely high bond for these charges.

3. Baez filed a Motion to suppress audio and video recordings of Casey Anthony communicating with family and friends while at the jail, arguing that releasing this to the press would inhibit his client's ability to get a fair trial. The Motion was denied.

What's At Stake Here?

At the time of this post, not only have the jailhouse communications been released to the media, but there's also 400 pages from the police investigation files (incident reports, etc.) readily available on the web, along with audios of interviews between the detectives and Casey Anthony. Additional charges have been made against her -- more economic charges, for writing bad checks, etc.

At the Anthony home, protesters yell and carry handwritten signs ("BabyKiller") 24/7, and one "blogger" was filmed taking away the Anthonys' trash and later combing through it for "evidence."

The neighbors' lives, as well as the Anthony family's, have to deal with this chaos now -- apparently, the police come only to break up fist fights.

Casey's parents, Cindy and George Anthony, have hired their own criminal defense attorney. Someone has offered Casey over $1,000,000 for her story and someone else has put up a reward of $250,000 for information regarding the whereabouts of little Caylee.

Why This Should Worry You

Every night, CNN devotes two hours to this story since it's all that Nancy Grace follows anymore. FoxNews usually has an hour, unless Greta Von Susteren is covering something about the presidential race.

On the web, an unbelievable amount of the police investigation files are available for anyone to download and read. Countless blogs and forums exist to chat and discuss the latest information as well as the latest rumors.

And what is the common theme here? Judgment. Casey Anthony is being judged on whether or not she did something to her child long before she is ever charged with a crime or made to face a jury.

She has a right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. You have that right, too.

She has a right to be tried fairly, with an unbiased jury who have not made up their minds in advance. You have that right, too.

It is not a question of whether or not Casey Anthony harmed her daughter. It is a question of whether or not the system is being played.

Disrespecting our system of justice is something that should make us all very, very worried.

Good luck, Jose.

Sources:

OrlandoSentinel.Com (Complete Coverage of Missing Caylee Marie Anthony)
(http://www.orlandosentinel.com/services/newspaper/printedition/monday/orl-caylee-anthony-missing-stories,0,5047466.storygallery)

NancyGrace/CNN's Find Caylee Blog
(http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/09/08/NGfindcayleeblog/)

Investigation Discovery -- Full Coverage of the Caylee Anthony Case
(http://investigation.discovery.com/blogs/criminal-report/casey_anthony_full_coverage/caylee_anthony.html)