by Jeanine Molloff
October 1, 2015
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As an innocent autistic man is set to be executed on Oct. 6 in Missouri, the fate of Kimber Edwards lies in the hands of Governor Nixon. Will he grant clemency in this unfair and unethical case?
Missouri plans to execute an innocent autistic man October 6th. Ferguson prosecutor Robert McCulloch and his team presided over the case. The same St. Louis County Police Department charged with brutality and overt criminality in the Ferguson debacle, helped secure the arrest and coerce testimony leading to state sanctioned murder. Additionally, the Missouri Supreme Court has refused a defense request, to hear the case or appoint a special master to review the case for any prosecutorial improprieties. At this point, the only appeal venue is Missouri Governor Jay Nixon. Governor Nixon has the power to ‘stay’ the execution pending independent investigation of police and prosecutorial mis-conduct regarding coerced confessions and suborned perjury of prosecution witnesses. To date, Governor Nixon has refused to respond.
On a more personal note; the man scheduled to die October 6th is Kimber Edwards.
Kimber Edwards was charged and convicted of murder and armed criminal action carrying the death penalty in 2002. He is scheduled to die in the execution chamber October 6th. The case was under the jurisdiction of Ferguson Prosecutor, Robert McCulloch of St. Louis County. McCulloch’s prosecutors claimed that in 2000, Edwards hired Orthell Wilson to murder his ex-wife, Kimberly Cantrell, in order to evade criminal prosecution regarding delinquent child support payments.
Allegations have been made accusing St. Louis County Police of coercing a confession from Edwards, and forcing a plea deal on the actual murderer in return for witness testimony against Edwards. The man who recently signed a formally witnessed affidavit recanting his previous testimony and confessing to the murder was that same prosecution witness, Orthell Wilson. Wilson claims he was threatened by police with the death penalty if he didn’t accept the plea which included alleged perjured testimony against Kimber Edwards. Wilson is white and Edwards is black. No actual physical evidence has ever linked Edwards to the crime.
One last thing; Kimber Edwards is autistic.
The basic facts in quotes were derived from the U.S. District Court, Missouri Eastern Division, Judge Carol Jackson presiding. This description was presented as the rationale for Kimber Edwards alleged murder for hire plot.
1. “In March 2000, petitioner was charged with the class D felony of failing to pay court-ordered child support for a 12-month period. On August 25, 2000, petitioner was scheduled to appear at a settlement conference where he was expected to accept or reject an offered plea agreement.2 Ms. Cantrell was listed as a witness for the prosecution. Petitioner had recently been terminated from his employment as a correctional officer with the City of St. Louis. He and his wife Jada owned and operated an apartment complex on Palm Street in St. Louis.”
2. “The proposed plea agreement required petitioner to make a lump-sum payment of $1,500 and monthly payments of $500. In exchange, he would receive a suspended imposition of sentence and a five-year term of probation.”
Additional facts regarding the crime scene are as follows:
• Kimber Edwards shared custody of his daughter Erica with ex-wife Kimberly Cantrell.
• Edwards was a year behind in his child support and faced charges with a court date 08/25/00.
• The daughter was staying with Edwards for 3 weeks before his court date.
• Kimberly Cantrell was found dead from two shots to her head, days before the child support hearing.
• Kimber Edwards and a tenant, Orthell Wilson were arrested in connection with the Cantrell death.
• Edwards issued a confusing confession that has since been recanted.
• Orthell Wilson was offered a plea agreement to implicate Edwards in the death of Cantrell. Wilson was required by prosecutors to plead guilty to 1st Degree Murder and testify into evidence that Edwards solicited a murder for hire plot. In exchange for his testimony, Wilson evaded the death penalty and received a life sentence without parole.
• Edwards was tried for murder. None of the actual physical evidence linked Edwards to the murder. During the course of police interrogations, Edwards gave a confession. None of the interrogation sessions were recorded, some which allegedly lasted nine hours without a break. Defense attorneys have claimed that Edwards was coerced into a manufactured confession after police threatened to apprehend and interrogate his present wife and children.
From the US District Court transcript:
“The University City police told petitioner that Orthel Wilson was in custody and showed him the murder weapon. Petitioner continued to deny any involvement in Ms. Cantrell’s murder. However, when officers stated that they were going to reinterview his wife and children, petitioner agreed to make a statement, as long as his family was *55 left alone.”
“After signing a waiver of his Miranda rights…”
As a result of Edwards’ confession and the coerced testimony of Wilson, Edwards received the death penalty. The all white jury declared Edwards guilty and voted for the death penalty …”after a sentencing hearing that lasted less than a day.”
The autism diagnosis, police/prosecutorial misconduct
The case was tried in 2002. Post-conviction, Kimber Edwards was given multiple psychiatric evaluations and diagnosed with a unique form of Autism, named Aspergers Syndrome. Dr. William S. Logan, MD claimed that evidence of autism spectrum disorder/Aspergers, most likely surfaced early in Kimber Edward’s childhood. Dr. Logan characterized Kimber Edwards as being …”lost in his own world.” (Source)
In all fairness, the police, prosecutors, defense attorneys, judge and jury had no official knowledge of his condition, though his odd behaviors should have provoked a competency evaluation during the trial phase. (Source)
Actual court transcripts reveal evidence of autism spectrum disorder since infancy according to anecdotal behavioral testimony from relatives:
”When petitioner was an infant he did not cry or respond to external stimulation; as he grew older, he did not crawl or play with toys. He did not show interest in or affection for other family *77 members.” (Source)
Defense teams had multiple experts testify to Edwards’ significant intellectual and psychological deficiencies.
The transcript from the US District Court disclosed the following:
“The *88 defense team put together an outline of significant events in petitioner’s life but did not complete a full social history until after trial. Based upon the information available before trial, Dr. Stacy diagnosed petitioner with pervasive developmental disorder, not otherwise specified, with a secondary diagnosis of narcissistic personality disorder. Dr. Cross alerted the defense team that petitioner had a 25-point difference between his verbal and performance IQ scales that was indicative of a developmental disability.”
“Nonetheless, all three experts concluded that petitioner was competent to stand trial and did not have a mental disease or defect that could provide a defense or mitigation evidence.” (Source)
Unfortunately, the initial defense team failed to obtain a thorough developmental history which shed more light on the autism diagnosis. Presiding Judge Carol Jackson further commented on this discovery by the post-conviction team, yet prejudiced her analysis when she characterized Dr. Logan’s diagnosis and explanation as Dr. Logan …” opined that the evidence of the Asperger’s Disorder diagnosis could have been offered during the penalty phase to explain petitioner’s abnormal demeanor and his inability to reach an amicable agreement with Ms. Cantrell regarding child support and custody issues.” (Source)
To quote Judge Jackson from the court transcript:
“The post-conviction team obtained a complete social history, which was provided to three experts who testified during the post-conviction proceedings: William S. Logan, M.D., Wanda Draper, Ph.D., and Dr. Cross. Dr. Draper, a “developmentalist,” reviewed the records and interviewed petitioner and members of his family. Dr. Cross reinterviewed Mildred Edwards, learning for the first time about the family violence and petitioner’s lack of attachment. Dr. Logan reviewed the records and interviewed petitioner. After a joint meeting with the legal team, the experts concluded that petitioner showed signs consistent with Asperger’s Disorder. This is a developmental disorder in the Autism spectrum that is characterized by impaired social interactions, stereotypes, and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests.”
“Dr. Logan opined that the evidence of the Asperger’s Disorder diagnosis could have been offered during the penalty phase to explain petitioner’s abnormal demeanor and his inability to reach an amicable agreement with Ms. Cantrell regarding child support and custody issues.” (Source)
Relevance of autism diagnosis and need for a retrial
Autism expert Julie A. Donnelly PhD explained the relevance of Edwards’ autism diagnosis. If Edwards were coerced to make a false confession as has been asserted by his attorneys from the Midwest Innocence Project, his autism would have rendered him unable to resist such coercion. Donnelly explains this succinctly in an op-ed she wrote in The Columbia Tribune 09/27/15.
To quote Donnelly:
“Individuals with autism are especially susceptible to being pressured. They often do not understand the consequences when they agree to requests to escape from a difficult situation. They might make statements that are at odds with the truth. Many individuals with such disabilities have learned that, when unsure, it is best to say “yes” to get along.”(Source)
Autistic persons are frequently unable to read the body language, facial expression or vocal tone of others. Though they feel emotions, autistic people often display a ‘flat affect’ or deadpan expression which looks like there is a lack of emotion or empathy. Socially appropriate facial expressions are alien to those diagnosed with Autism, especially Aspergers.
To quote Dr. Donnelly once again:
“Kimber Edwards’ expression or lack of expression at his ex-wife’s death, as Logan reported, was introduced at the trial and used as damaging characterization to the jury, when it is common in autism to feel emotion but not show it in the typical manner.” (Source)
According to Dr. Logan’s report, Edwards continued to display autistic characteristics such as narrowly focused interests on various objects and a slavish need to follow inflexible routines. Subsequently, Edwards was unable to comprehend the ‘big picture’ of his conviction and could not assist attorneys in his own defense.
Autism diagnosis should have triggered a retrial
Once again, prosecutors in St. Louis County under the tutelage of Ferguson prosecutor Robert McCulloch, discounted the ethical challenges the autism diagnosis presents. Since persons diagnosed with autism are highly suggestive to any intimidation or coercion, the confession obtained by police under alleged coercion, should have been thrown out of court, the initial proceedings declared a mistrial, with a new trial ordered. Autistic persons, especially with Aspergers, can be told that what comes out of Donald Trump’s ass is pure spun gold, with few qualifiers, and believe it as literal fact. These are not people who can aid in their own defense.
It is the height of pure corruption for police to interrogate such individuals without benefit of council. If Edwards displayed autism most probably since early childhood as Dr. Logan wrote, then his symptoms would have been apparent to lay persons. To put it bluntly, Edward’s incompetency to understand the situation would have been obvious to police and the prosecution team. Unfortunately, an autistic black man in pre-Ferguson, St. Louis County, was little more than an easy win and another notch in a prosecutor’s belt.
Under the ADA or Americans with Disability Act, Edwards was entitled to specialty advocates in addition to any attorneys. It is ironic that the courts building in St. Louis County has legally required wheelchair ramps to provide accessibility to the physically disabled while violating the rights of intellectually and emotionally disabled persons.
Racial bias looms over jury
Edwards was convicted by an all white jury. Since this case was tried by the same prosecution team which spurred the Ferguson riots after the death of Michael Brown, accusations of racial bias and exclusion of blacks from the jury pool have recently surfaced. (Source: Associated Press, Sept. 28, 2015)
Edwards’ attorneys from the Midwest Innocence Project challenged the monolithic jury pool, alleging that county prosecutors unduly disqualified black jurors. An op-ed in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch explained, “One black candidate was struck because he was divorced, even as a divorced white juror was seated.” (Source : St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 09/30/15)
Main prosecution witness recants his testimony…alleges his perjury was coerced by police
The prosecution’s main witness, Orthell Wilson did not actually testify in court. Out of court statements collected by St. Louis County Prosecutors were introduced into evidence. The jury was never told about Wilson’s confession, or his 1st degree murder conviction and subsequent plea agreement. Prosecutors failed to disclose the main condition of the plea; namely that Wilson, the confessed murderer would escape the death penalty in return for implicating Edwards. Wilson had to claim that Edwards concocted and engineered this ‘murder for hire’ conspiracy in order to save his own skin. The jury never knew they were witnessing the alleged suborned perjury instigated by St. Louis County Police and accepted by the ‘Ferguson prosecutor.’
All of that changed in May of this year when Wilson recanted his testimony and confessed to the murder in a witnessed affidavit:
”In an affidavit in May, Wilson said he was “coerced by police to implicate Edwards” by threat of the death penalty. Wilson now says he acted alone. Weis said Wilson and Cantrell were in a relationship and he killed her after an argument. Kimber Edwards is completely innocent,” Wilson said in his affidavit. (Source: Associated Press, Sept. 28, 2015)
Unfortunately court records show that Wilson’s recantation was ruled inadmissible. Prosecutors in McCulloch’s office have not publicly commented on Wilson’s confession to the murder. Though Wilson’s recantation was declared inadmissible, his confession is new legal territory. Wilson’s confession states clearly that he alone murdered Cantrell. Edwards had no involvement.
14th amendment violations rejected by appeals court
Edwards’ defense attorneys on appeal claimed that his 14th amendment rights under the due process and equal protection clauses were violated, since the actual murderer received life in prison, while Edwards received the death penalty. The Mo. appeals court under Judge Carol Jackson issued a stunning denial, solely relying on technical procedural claims.
To quote Judge Carol Jackson of United States District Court, E.D. Missouri, Eastern Division:
“Petitioner also claims that imposing the death sentence upon him when Orthel Wilson received life imprisonment violates the due process and equal protection clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment. These arguments were not presented to the state courts and are procedurally defaulted here.” (Source)
Once again, complex procedural rules trump actual justice. Though these rules are based on the concept of ‘legal precedent’ or decided case law from earlier cases, such precedent does not address historically biased court systems laced with racism and economic disadvantage. Such precedent also fails to address ingrained police bias, racism accompanied by a total lack of police accountability. Keep in mind, the vile Dred Scot decision, justifying slavery by declaring blacks to be three-fifths of a human—was decided on procedural rules and legal precedent. Neither case remotely resembles justice.
Missouri Governor Nixon refuses to consider appeals
While Kimber Edwards faces execution after an unfair and unethical trial, the sole office holder who can grant clemency, namely Governor Nixon, is preoccupied with spending public tax dollars on a football stadium for billionaire NFL owners. Multiple appeals from various groups have fallen on politically deaf ears.
Edwards’ present attorneys, Jeremy Weis and Tricia Bushnell cited Wilson’s affidavit stating that Wilson’s motivation was to save himself from execution. Weis and Bushnell are both attorneys with the Midwest Innocence Project. Their objection to alleged police and prosecutorial misconduct is explained simply.
“This could become a case where we could execute an innocent man without even looking at the evidence that he is innocent,” Bushnell said.
(Source: Associated Press, Sept. 28, 2015)
Apparently that ethical concern isn’t shared by Ferguson prosecutor McCulloch, his team, Governor Nixon, U.S. District Judge Carol Jackson, or the St. Louis County Police.