Judge Ammons volunteers to remove himself from hearing four racial bias cases
A Cumberland County judge on Thursday removed himself from presiding over the cases of four people who in 2012 used a racial bias law to get off North Carolina's death row.
During a hearing at the Cumberland County Courthouse, Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons said he was stepping aside to prevent any allegations about his ability to be fair from clouding the cases.
The N.C. Supreme Court in December overturned the 4 inmates' reprieves and sent their cases to Ammons for new hearings under the state's controversial Racial Justice Act.
Convicted murderers Marcus Reymond Robinson, Quintel Augustine, Tilmon Golphin and Christina Walters in 2012 were the first and only prisoners in the state to use the Racial Justice Act to get their death sentences commuted to life in prison without parole. The law, which was repealed in 2013, allowed death row inmates to attempt to prove racism was a factor in their cases and, based on the racism, overturn their death sentences.
The 4 defendants persuaded now-retired Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Greg Weeks there was racial bias on the part of prosecutors in the selection of the juries that convicted the defendants and sentenced them to death.
The defendants' lawyers since January filed many hundreds of pages of documents to argue that Ammons has conflicts of interest and biases that preclude him from presiding over these cases. They said he has professional and personal relationships with law enforcement and former colleagues in the Cumberland County District Attorney's Office that would keep him from fairly deciding whether Augustine, Walters, Robinson and Golphin should again be removed from death row.
The lawyers accuse some of Ammons' former colleagues of racial bias and have noted that his brother-in-law used to be head of the N.C. Highway Patrol. One of Golphin's victims was a Highway Patrol trooper.
In the court papers and again at Thursday morning's hearing, the lawyers alleged that Ammons showed racial bias when he was a prosecutor in the 1980s and used peremptory challenges to prevent several blacks from serving on a jury in a death penalty trial.
Ammons, his voice raised sometimes in apparent anger, said he could fairly decide the cases.
"I have sworn to administer judgment without favoritism to anyone or to the state. I will not violate those oaths for anyone or anything," he said.
Later, he formally denied the defense lawyers' requests to recuse himself.
But moments after that Ammons announced he would step aside.
"As I looked out into this courtroom this morning, 2 things became very clear to me," he said.
"No. 1: The enormous time, effort and expense these 9 defense counsel have devoted to the sole issue of replacing me with another judge.
"No. 2: The continued burden of uncertainty and the toll of time that has happened over the last 25 years in some incidences, on all parties.
"For these reasons, I will not allow my properly presiding over any of these cases to continue to be an issue when the court's true task should be determining the merits of these claims."
Ammons said he would assign another judge or judges to take over the case. Defense lawyer Jay Ferguson and the others said Ammons should not be involved in the selection of any replacement judge "because of conflict and biases alleged in our motion to recuse."
At that, Ammons said he would leave it up to the state Administrative Office of the Courts to pick the judge.
A replacement judge will be appointed by the chief justice of the state Supreme Court, spokeswoman Sharon Gladwell said. "No timeline is established; however, appointments usually are made expeditiously," she said.
Robinson, Augustine and Walters were in the courtroom Thursday and sat in shackles next to their lawyers. Golphin elected not to attend, but his lawyers were there on his behalf.
About 50 spectators attended, including relatives of the defendants' victims.
Robinson and an accomplice kidnapped, robbed and murdered teenager Erik Tornblom in 1991.
Golphin and his brother, Kevin Golphin, killed Cumberland County Deputy David Hathcock and N.C. Highway Patrol Trooper Ed Lowry during a traffic stop on Interstate 95 in 1997.
In 1998, Christina Walters led a gang that kidnapped 3 women, drove them to remote areas and shot them execution-style. Tracy Lambert and Susan Moore died, and the 3rd victim barely survived.
Quintel Augustine was convicted of shooting Fayetteville police Officer Roy Turner Jr. to death in 2001. Augustine maintains his innocence.
Afterward, Al Lowry, who was Ed Lowry's brother, criticized the proceedings.
"They keep crying foul. The decision's been made for the death penalty. And we've been 19 years and counting. Nothing ought to take this long," he said.
"No matter what judge they select, it's always going to be an excuse on their side."
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THE INMATES
Marcus Reymond Robinson and an accomplice kidnapped, robbed and murdered teenager Erik Tornblom in 1991. 16 years later, Robinson was hours from being put to death before a judge halted all executions in North Carolina over legal questions about North Carolina's execution method.
Tilmon Golphin and his brother Kevin killed Cumberland County Deputy David Hathcock and state Highway Patrol Trooper Ed Lowry during a traffic stop on Interstate 95 in 1997.
In 1998, Christina Walters led a gang that kidnapped 3 women, drove them to remote areas and shot them execution-style. Tracy Lambert and Susan Moore died; the 3rd victim barely survived.
Quintel Augustine was convicted of shooting Fayetteville police Officer Roy Turner Jr. to death in 2001. He maintains that he is innocent.
HISTORY OF THE RACIAL JUSTICE ACT
August 2009: North Carolina passes the Racial Justice Act. It allows death row inmates to seek review of racial influence in their cases. If discriminatory practices are found, the inmates' sentences can be converted to life in prison without parole.
April 2012: Out of about 150 claims filed by death row inmates, Marcus Robinson of Cumberland County was the 1st defendant to present evidence alleging racial bias in his trial. Superior Court Judge Greg Weeks rules that racism affected Robinson's trial and converts his sentence to life in prison without parole.
July 2012: Lawmakers amend the Racial Justice Act to make it more difficult for defendants to prove allegations of racism.
October 2012: Quintel Augustine, Christina Walters and Tilmon Golphin - all convicted for Cumberland County homicides - present their Racial Justice Act cases.
December 2012: Weeks rules that racism influenced their trials. He converts their sentences to life in prison without parole.
June 2013: The legislature repeals the Racial Justice Act.
December 2015: The state Supreme Court overturns Weeks' rulings in the Robinson, Augustine, Walters and Golphin cases and sends them back to Cumberland County Superior Court to be done again.
http://www.fayobserver.com/news/crim...217d3e12c.html
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