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Thread: Charles Ray Crawford - Mississippi Death Row

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    Charles Ray Crawford - Mississippi Death Row






    Facts of the Crime:

    Was given a death sentence in Lafayette County in 1994. It was a change of venue case from Tippah County. In 1993, Crawford kidnapped Kristy Ray, a college student, from her home in rural Tippah County, raped her, handcuffed her to a pine tree and stabbed her to death.

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    December 4, 2009

    Death row inmate wins hearing on mental exam

    Mississippi death row inmate Charles Ray Crawford has won a hearing on whether a mental examination in an unrelated case was improperly used against him in his capital murder trial.

    In court documents, Crawford argued to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that a psychiatric evaluation, performed for the purpose of determining his competency in an unrelated rape trial, should not have been used in the capital murder case, in which he was sentenced in the killing of community college student Kristy Ray.

    On Wednesday, a three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit ruled Crawford was without an attorney in the murder case and had no one to counsel him on whether to submit to the mental examination. According to court documents, Crawford, with his attorney's approval, underwent the mental exam in 1993 for the rape trial.

    "Crawford had already committed the Ray murder and intended to present an insanity defense in the assault trial," the 5th Circuit panel said. "It was therefore foreseeable that his mental state could be placed at issue during any ensuing capital murder trial."

    According to the court record, prosecutors in the murder case used the results of the mental exam to attack Crawford's claims of insanity. The panel said a Mississippi federal judge, who had dismissed Crawford's claim, should now hear arguments on it.

    Crawford's attorney, Ken Coghlan, of Oxford, said Thursday the U.S. Supreme Court has held in several cases that before a defendant undergoes a psychiatric evaluation he has to have a lawyer to advise him.

    "Certainly what happened was a tragedy," Coghlan said. "But there are a lot of legal issues that come to play in this case. It is an unusual issue but one that has come up in other parts of the country. The whole issue of how people with mental illnesses are handled (in the courts), I've always thought was a vert important issue."

    Attorney General Jim Hood said in a statement that Crawford's case has been pending for some time and the victim's family deserves closure. "They are our highest priority, and we will move forward with the case in the district court in hopes of a speedy resolution for their sake," Hood said.

    (Source: The Hattiesburg American)

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    Senior Member CnCP Legend JLR's Avatar
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    Hearing in death row appeal postponed

    ABERDEEN, Miss. (WTVA) - A hearing in U.S. Federal Court appealing the death sentence handed down in a Tippah County case has been canceled until further notice.

    Charles Ray Crawford, 45, is on death row for the 1993 abduction and murder of Kristy Ray, 29, who was taken from her parent's home in the Chalybeate community.

    Crawford was convicted in 1994 and sentenced to die.

    His attorneys presented an insanity defense at the trial claiming he suffered from psychogenic amnesia and bipolar disorder.

    Crawford has lost several appeals in state and federal courts, but is now seeking to gain a new trial because he did not have an attorney when a psychiatric evaluation of his competency was ordered.

    The U. S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ordered a U.S. District Court to hold a hearing on whether to grant Crawford a certificate of appealability.

    A hearing was set to take place Tuesday in Aberdeen, but according to court papers, is canceled until further notice.

    http://www.wtva.com/news/local/story...nL-Hnt5eA.cspx

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    Administrator Moh's Avatar
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    On September 12, 2012, Crawford filed an appeal in the US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals over the denial of his habeas petition in Federal District Court.

    http://dockets.justia.com/docket/cir.../ca5/12-70027/

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    Administrator Heidi's Avatar
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    Death row inmate seeks new arguments before court

    Death row inmate Charles Ray Crawford is asking the Mississippi Supreme Court to let him file a new petition that he believes will win him a new trial.

    Crawford argues in a new motion that his previous attorneys did a poor job of handling his first petition for post-conviction relief.

    Crawford argues that if the court allows him to try again, he'll explain his arguments better. In a post-conviction petition, inmates argues they have found new evidence — or a possible constitutional issue — that could persuade a court to order a new trial.

    Crawford is now 43 and was sentenced to death in 1994 for the murder and rape of Northeast Mississippi Community College student Kristy Ray in rural Tippah County.

    Crawford also has an appeal pending before the U.S. Supreme Court.

    Crawford handcuffed the 20-year-old Ray and stuffed one of his socks in her mouth before sexually assaulting and stabbing her to death in 1993.

    He claimed he did not remember the attack, but led authorities to the body buried in leaves in a wooded area.

    Crawford's first post-conviction petition was denied in 2003 by the Mississippi court. The justices said Crawford may not like how his attorney presented his defense, but there's nothing in the case that justified a new trial.

    The Mississippi Office of Capital Post-Conviction Counsel now argues if Crawford can file a second petition he will show his lawyers "filed incomplete pleadings, did not obtain any expert assistance and failed to conduct even a cursory investigation into the capital crime and Mr. Crawford's background and family."

    The counsel office said it also wants to file with the court a mental examination conducted in November, arguing testing done in 1993 was incomplete.

    Crawford also has appeal pending before the U.S. Supreme Court in which he is asking for a review of an alleged constitutional error in his trial for the slaying of the college junior.

    A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in June upheld a 2012 decision in Mississippi's Northern District federal court.

    Both courts said while Crawford was deprived of his Sixth Amendment right to counsel as it related to a 1993 psychiatric evaluation, prosecutors presented enough evidence to the trial jury to uphold his conviction and sentence even if the evaluation had not occurred.

    The attorney general's office has a deadline of Monday to file a response to Crawford's petition.

    In 1993, Crawford was out on bond awaiting trial on charges of aggravated assault and rape, with a notice he planned to pursue an insanity defense.

    Four days before his trial, Ray was abducted from her parents' home.

    It was after the arrest for Ray's death that a judge ordered the mental examination.

    Crawford later was tried and convicted on the original charges and sentenced to 66 years in prison.

    During his trial for Ray's death, psychiatrists differed on Crawford's mental condition. Court documents show prosecutors used results of the 1993 examination, which found Crawford mentally competent, to attack Crawford's insanity defense in the capital murder case. Ultimately Crawford was convicted and sentenced to death.

    The Mississippi Supreme Court upheld his death sentence in 1998 and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case that year.

    http://www.sunherald.com/2013/12/27/...#storylink=cpy
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    Miss. death penalty case before US high court

    JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - The U.S. Supreme Court will consider Feb. 21 whether to hear an appeal from a Mississippi death row inmate who's arguing there was a constitutional error in his trial for the slaying of a junior college student.

    Court officials say a decision could be announced shortly after the court conference.

    Charles Ray Crawford argues he was deprived his Six Amendment right to counsel as it related to a 1993 psychiatric evaluation.

    Crawford is now 43 and was sentenced to death in 1994 for the murder and rape of Northeast Mississippi Community College student Kristy Ray in rural Tippah County.

    Crawford claimed he did not remember the attack, but led authorities to the body buried in leaves in a wooded area.

    State and federal courts have denied his appeals.

    http://www.knoe.com/story/24537222/m...-us-high-court

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    Administrator Heidi's Avatar
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    Charles Ray Crawford capital murder conviction stands

    Mississippi death row inmate Charles Ray Crawford has again been denied a new trial for the slaying of a junior college student.

    A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday upheld a 2012 decision in Mississippi's Northern District federal court.

    Both courts said while Crawford was deprived his Six Amendment right to counsel as it related to a 1993 psychiatric evaluation, prosecutors presented enough evidence to the trial jury to uphold his conviction and sentence even if the evaluation had not occurred.

    "Accordingly, the constitutional error was harmless and Crawford is not entitled to post-conviction relief," the panel said in its ruling.

    Crawford, now 43, was sentenced to death in 1994 for the murder and rape of Northeast Mississippi Community College student Kristy Ray in rural Tippah County.

    In 1993, Crawford was out on bond awaiting trial on charges of aggravated assault and rape, with a notice he planned to pursue an insanity defense.

    Four days before his trial, the 20-year-old Ray was abducted from her parents' home in Chalybeate. After his family and attorney notified police that they feared another crime was being committed, Crawford was arrested. Crawford told authorities he did not remember the incident but later led them to the body buried in leaves in a wooded area.

    It was after the arrest for Ray's death that a judge ordered the mental examination.

    Crawford later was tried and convicted on the original charges and sentenced to 66 years in prison.

    During his trial for Ray's death, psychiatrists differed on Crawford's mental condition. Court documents show prosecutors used results of the 1993 examination, which found Crawford mentally competent, to attack Crawford's insanity defense in the capital murder case. Ultimately Crawford was convicted and sentenced to death.

    The Mississippi Supreme Court upheld his death sentence in 1998. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case that year.

    Crawford was granted an appeal to the 5th Circuit to argue he was subjected to a 1993 psychiatric evaluation without benefit of counsel. The Sixth Amendment protects the rights of criminal defendants to have a lawyer and effective legal representation.

    In 2009, the 5th Circuit ordered the Mississippi district court to hear the Sixth Amendment argument.

    After a hearing in the Northern District of Mississippi, the court ruled in 2012 that Crawford's right to counsel was violated but it was constitutionally harmless. Crawford appealed that decision to the 5th Circuit, which issued its new decision Tuesday.

    http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi...capital_m.html
    An uninformed opponent is a dangerous opponent.

    "Y'all be makin shit up" ~ Markeith Loyd

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    On August 15, 2013, the US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied Crawford's petition for rehearing en banc.

    http://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.a...es/13-7146.htm

  10. #10
    Weidmann1939
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    "We" can expect a date in the March to April time frame?

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