11 20 256 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/a588d811954aef582cc51d8c05fe5904.jpg fc8af075bbd55af070646ccac61474ed https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/b5175b6cc7f7e4a01cb576049fad03ef.jpg da3579f06c888dc97abd2552363f938a Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [Heading] Spaziano wins stay of execution High court orders new hearing By Michael Griffin TALLAHASSEE BUREAU CHIEF [Text] TALLAHASSEE - Joseph "Crazy Joe" Spaziano won a stay of execution Tuesday from the Florida Supreme Court but lost his favored lawyer. The reprieve resulted not from courtroom maneuvers or media pressure, but from a dispute over who should represent the biker convicted in 1976 of the torture-murder of an Orlando women. And the prize could be temporary: Justices issued an indefinite stay but a hearing that holds all of Spaziano's chances for a new trial must be held no later than Nov.15. "I'm relieved for Joe and his family," said Vermont law professor Michael Mello, the lawyer removed by the court. "But this isn't over by a long shot." Dexter Douglass, Gov. Lawton Chiles' general counsel, said the court had no choice but to grant a stay, given Mello's refusal to attend a hearing that had been scheduled for Friday in Sanford or to cooperate with the state death-penalty lawyers authorized to take over Spaziano's defense. "This is a victory by the improper, unethical and unprofessional stand of an alleged professor," Douglass said. "He did such a bad job that his client won out." The ruling issued on the 20th of Spaziano's murder indictment and the biker's 50th birthday, means he will not die under his fifth death warrant for the 1973 murder of Orlando hospital clerk Laura Harberts. Spaziano had been scheduled to die Sept. 21. Art Harberts, father or the 18- year-old victim, said he was disappointed by the stay but optimistic about the final outcome. "In the long run, he's going to have to face up to all this." Harberts said of Spaziano. In the ruling on seven motions filed by both Mello and the state's Office of Capital Collateral Representative, justices said the bitter disagreement between the lawyers jeopardized Spaziano's chances for adequate counsel. [end of page 1] [start page 2] Spaziano refuses to see an attorney appointed by state SAPZIANO from C-1 Justices sharply criticized Mello, who had refused orders to cooperate with CCR. The lawyer had said the agency had botched the Spaziano case when it handled it before. "In view of Mello's actions," the justice wrote, "we find that he has effectively withdrawn from representing Spaziano." Mello said he would not withdraw and would appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court. He also said he has not decided whether to give the case files to CCR while he appeals and looks for a private law firm to take on the case. Spaziano's hopes rest on Tony DiLiso, a witness from the 1976 murder trial who now says the biker never took him to see the bodies of Harberts and another women at an Altamonte Springs dump. Last week, the court ordered the Seminole Circuit Court to hold a hearing Friday in Sanford on DiListo's recantation. Now that the hearing will be delayed so prosecutors have time to prepare, Three of the justices - Leander Shaw, Gerald Kogan and Harry Lee Anstead- questioned whether even the Nov.15th deadlone gives lawyers enough time to adequately study the complected case. Spaziano refused to meet with a CCR attorney Monday. His mother, Rose, wrote to Mello asking him to not allow CCR on the case. The justices said they understood Spaziano's distress but noted that Mello cannot afford to represent the biker and has little trial court experience. [end of page two] Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Donnellan, Edward Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Spaziano wins stay of execution Subject The topic of the resource Capital Punishment Description An account of the resource Joe Spaziano, nicknamed "Crazy Joe" was granted a stay of execution from the Florida Supreme Court.. The court ordered a new hearing, that will be held no later than November 15th. Mr. Spaziano has refused to see a state appointed attorney, after his original attorney Michael Mello's actions were deemed unethical by the justices. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Griffin, Michael Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Griffin, Michael. 1995. “Spaziano Wins Stay of Execution.” The Orlando Sentinel, September 13, 1995, sec. C. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1995-13-09 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 2 JPGs 300 DPI Language A language of the resource English Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Orlando, FL "Crazy Joe" Spaziano 1995 20th Century Capital punishment. Florida Florida Supreme Court Mello https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/ffad1f69ff5a07c3500087cff788d6d9.jpg 87430e4d256362f22a8954e46cb44b03 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [Title]: Spaziano gets stay of execution [Text]: TALLAHASSEE - The Florida Supreme Court granted convicted murderer Joseph Spaziano an indefinite stay of execution Tuesday after a dispute among the condemned man's attorys left him without legal representation. Spaziano, an Outlaws motorcycle gang member convicted in 1976 of mutilating and murdering an 18-year old Orlando hospital clerk, was set to die at & a.m. Sept. 21. It was his fifth death warrant in 20 years and second stay in three months. The Supreme Court postponed a lower court hearing in Seminole County set for Friday and ordered another one held by Nov. 15 to allow Spaziano's attorneys a chance to prepare. "My overriding feeling is relief and joy that my innocent client isn't going to be killed on schedule," said Michael Mello, a Vermont Law School professor who represented Spaziano. Spaziano, who turned 50 Tuesday, was relieved at the news, Mello said. The delay came after Mello refused to represent Spaziano at the Friday hearing, arguing he didn't have the time or money to prepare. He also refused the court's order to cooperate with state-paid attorneys assigned to represent the biker. "The court had very little choice except to do what they did," said Dexter Douglass, Gov. Lawton's chief legal counsel. "Mr. Mello created a situation where it couldn't be handled fairly, did it purposely." Mello has behaved unprofessionally and displayed contempt for the court, Douglass said. "What he's done doesn't enhance the views of lawyers, or the courts or the media," Douglass said. Last week, the court ruled in a 4-3 opinion not to grant a stay but ordered the hearing Friday on evidence that the key witness against Spaziano had lied. The witness, Anthony DiLisio of Pensacola, recently told the Florida Department of Law Enforcement that he was coaxed into lying at Spaziano's by police officers who hypnotized him and offered him favors. Several justices argued that if DiLisio was telling the truth, Spaziano deserved a new trail, but they refused to call off the execution before the hearing Friday. The court envisioned Mello and the office of the Capital Collateral Representative, the state appointed attorneys for Death Row, working together this week to prepare for the new hearing, but that was not to be. Over the weekend, a feud between Mello and the CCR over who should represent Spaziano escalated into a full-scale war, fought with legal briefs and and accusations of misconduct. The court lose patience with Mello on Tuesday and ruled unanimously that he had "effectively withdrawn" as Spaziano's attorney. Spaziano now must accept representation by CC, some other volunteer lawyer or no attorney at all, the court said. [end text] [photograph]: Spaziano behind bars [photograph text]: Motorcycle gang member Joseph Spaziano was convicted in 1976 of mutilating and and murdering an 18-year old hospital clerk. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Gill, Dennis Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Spaziano gets stay of execution Subject The topic of the resource Capital punishment Description An account of the resource On September 13, 1995, Joe Spaziano gets an indefinite stay of execution from the Florida Supreme Court. In addition, Spaziano's lawyers get a chance to prepare their case while Mello runs into legal trouble Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Metz, Kevin Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived The Tampa Tribune Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1993-09-13 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 JPG 300 DPI Language A language of the resource English Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Florida capital punishment Mello Spaziano https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/c9c38a51819e67516b000fb9bd73977a.jpg 88de3cd9b52922184b7b65a5b263168d https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/ee4c15c9121cc7220cdcb367b480768a.jpg 28d9af3b439b4576d18169df2df9bf65 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [Heading] Spaziano gets stay of execution [subheading] The court grants the indefinite stay after his attorney refuses to cooperate with the state. [BEGINNING OF PAGE ONE] The Gainesville Sun-Wednesday, September 13, 1995, Joseph "Crazy Joe" Spaziano cannot be executed next week because his attorney has refused to cooperate with state lawyers assigned to the case, the Florida Supreme Court said Tuesday. In giving Spaziano an indefinite stay of execution, the court canceled his fifth scheduled trip to Florida's electric chair. The unsigned opinion issued on Spaziano 50th birthday. Spaziano is condemned for the August 1973 mutilation-murder of Laura Lynn Harberts, 18, an Orlando hospital records clerk. The execution had been set for 7 a.m. Sept 21. Harbert's father said his family has had to cope with the case for many years. "I just feel in the end it's going to be a long time, but I hope justice is served," Art Harberts, 67, said. "There is a lot of suffering and anguish for other people." Harberts, who lives in the Jacksonville area, said he attended Spaziano trial and had no doubt for his guilt. Michael Mello, the Vermont law professor who has been representing Spaziano for free and maintained his clients is innocents, said he was relieved by the stay. The Supreme Court said a stay was required because Mello has refused to cooperate with the state regency that represents indigent Death Row inmates, despite an order from the court on Friday to do so. "The fair administration of justice in Florida cannot proceed with such flagrant disregard of this court's procedures and directions," the Tuesday opinion reads. The high court on Friday ordered a central Florida trial court to hold a hearing into the merits of Spaziano appeal by the end of this week. Mello said he would not attend because the justices didn't give him enough time to prepare. In Tuesday's ruling, the court said that decision by Mello indicated he had effectively withdrawn as Spaziano's attorney. The court said it was aware Spaziano is opposed to have the office of Capital Collateral Representative, the state agency that represents Death Row inmates, involved in his case. See EXECUTE on page 2B [END OF PAGE ONE] [BEGINNING OF PAGE TWO] Execute Continued from page 1B "Spaziano is faced with a choice" the court wrote, saying it was him to be represented by CCR, a competent volunteer attorney or no one. Chief Justice Stephen Grimes and Justice Ben Overton, Major Harding and Charles Wells supported the majority opinion, which ordered a hearing into Spaziano's appeal by Nov. 15. Justice Lender Shaw, Gerald Kogan and Harry Lee Anstead said they agreed a stay was necessary and that Melo was off the case. But the three justice said they didn't think a deadline should be set for the hearing. In Tuesday's ruling, the court ordered Mello to turn the case files ordered Mello to turn the case files over to CCR and directed CCR to act as Spaziano's counsel "without Mello's assistance or inteference." Mello said he hoped to be able to stay on the case by putting together a defense team that includes him as well as a major Florida law firm willing to donate donate its time. [END OF PAGE 2] Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Hogue, Paul Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Spaziano gets stay of execution Description An account of the resource The judge for Joe Spaziano case gave Joe a delay his execution because of his lawyer did want to cooperate with the state attorney. Joe Spaziano was supposed to be executed for the murder of Laura Lynn Harberts who was 18 on August 1973 who was found dead and mutilated. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource The Associated Press Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived "Spaziano gets stay of execution." The Gainesville Sun (Tallahassee, Florida), September 13, 1995, p. 1B-2B. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1995-09-13 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Language A language of the resource English Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Tallahassee, FL Subject The topic of the resource Capital punishment Spaziano, Joe Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 2 JPGs 300 dpi death penalty stay of execution https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/243e3c9d8e23b167acd62905a6a70d91.jpg 8b8562180cd68eae5d220e60af8046da Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [Heading] Editorials [Title] Let the system work [start of the first column] The Florida Supreme Court was right to give Joseph Spaziano more time to prove he is not a murderer. So many questions have been raised about Spaziano's guilt the is would be unconscionable to execute him as long as there are reasonable doubts All he needs now is a good lawyer. Whether intentional or not, lawyer Michael Mello's refusal to appear at a crucial hearing in the case left eh Supreme Court no choice but to delay the execution, which had been scheduled for Sept. 21. Mello was right to ask for more time to prepare for Friday's hearing, but he was wrong to boycott the proceeding if he didn't get his way. Mello's decision was a disservice to his client that showed contempt for the very court that could save him. The court, showing far more restraint than Mello, decided that Mello had effectively removed himself from the case. Spaziano has to find another lawyer, rely on state lawyers he has rebuffed in the past or go it alone, the court decided. Mello says he is on the case and plans to appeal, but his actions suggest that the court was right to conclude that he had removed himself. This is not the first time Mello's emotions have overwhelmed his judgement. Last month he wrote a stinging memo, riddled with expletives, that accused Gov. Lawton [end of the first column] [start of the second column] Chiles' office of lying, referred to U.S. Supreme Court justices in a vulgar manner and derided federal appeals court judges. Mello has been clashing with the state office of Capital Collateral Representative which defends death row inmates. "Better that Joe have no lawyer at all -- and that the world clearly sees that he had no lawyer -- than that Joe have the illusion of a lawyer, a hack (public defender) office like CCR that plays by the rules laid down by the people whose job it is to kill their clients," Mello wrote in his now-infamous memo. Spaziano might be dead if not for Mello's tireless work on his behalf, all of which he has done for free. For that he deserves a great deal of credit. But instead of fighting the CCR, he ought to work with them and get Spaziano to do the same. After all, he has admitted in motions that he had neither the money nor the expertise to handle the kind if evidentiary hearing the court has ordered. The public deserves to know the truth about Spaziano, who has been on death row for 20 years. Spaziano deserves a fair hearing. It is time Mello stopped playing games and give the system for which he has shown so much contempt a chance to work. It's time for Mello to stand aside. [end of article] Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Article Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Bridenbaugh, H. Sumner Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Let the system work Subject The topic of the resource Mello's temper with regard to court officials and his ability to continue on the case. Description An account of the resource Critiques Mello's temperment in the proceedings and in the case thus far. Commends Mello in the work he has done but disagrees with him in his outburst and calls for him to step away from the case and work with the existing legal system (the public defender's office) rather than against it. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Times Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1995-09-13 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 JPEG 300 dpi Language A language of the resource English criticism editorial emotion extension Gov. Lawton Chiles memo public defenders https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/ccde875d75630b0e60b58e64d4908d49.jpg 7121df0ef9d96ba8b635d50a0c533df4 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/029b1f47863bbff1115e75467358cc82.jpg 4841d041d89053064532305a2667f990 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Volunteer Lawyers Resources Centers budget eliminated https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/3daf94eaeaf06d024c08d972fbf091a7.jpg 1360eba2045e8e08815d825707b0c30c Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document <p>[Heading]<br />Operation to shut its doors this month <br /><br />Volunteer Lawyers Resource Center's budget eliminated <br /><br />By Mark D. Killian                               Associate Editor</p> <p>[Start of First Page]<br /><br />“We’re boxing it up and moving it out,” said Jennifer Greenberg, co-director of the Volunteer Lawyers’ Resource Center in Tallahassee. <br /><br />The organization, created in 1988 to assist death row prisoners in their ap-peals, is closing its doors following a House of Representatives vote to elimi-nate federal funding for the VLCR and 19 similar organizations throughout the country. <br /><br />The cuts are part of the 99-page House Appropriations Bills for the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the ju-diciary and related agencies for fiscal year 1996. <br /><br />“None of the funds provided in this Act shall be available for Death Penalty Re-source Centers or Post Conviction Defendant Organizations,” the bill, destined to become law, says. “It has not passed the senate yet, but our understanding is that there will be absolutely no problem with that occ-uring,” Greenberg said, adding that the Administrative Office of the Federal Courts has Directed the Resource Center to prepare to shut its doors on September 30. <br /><br />The news of the Resource Center’s closing came as a blow to Florida’s Office of the Capital Collateral Representative, which serves as counsel for all Florida death row prisoners not otherwise represented. <br /><br />Saying it has to many cases and too few lawyers, CCR Michael Minerva told the Supreme Court in a petition for re-lief that the center’s closing “threatens to send the system into chaos because an already overburdened CCR could not possibly absorb the sudden addition of other clients.” <br /><br />Minerva said out of the approximately 350 people on death row in Florida, his office represents 141 of them, with an-other 25 who are eligible for representation but have yet to be assigned counsel. The Resource Center and its volunteers represent another 50 prisoners, he said. A couple of others are represented by volunteers not associated with the Resource Center and the balance of death penalty cases are still on direct appeal. <br /><br />With the end of the Resource Center, the responsibility for finding lawyers for those sentenced to death again will ultimately fall on the Bar, president who sits on the Resource Center’s board of directors. Rinaman organized the Bar program in the mid-1980s that recruited law firms to handle death penalty appeals, and was instrumental in establishing the VLRC and CCR. <br /><br />”I think the Bar is going to be called upon to play a role,” Rinaman said. “The question is, what role?”<br /><br /><strong>Layoffs</strong><br /><br />Greenberg said the VLRC has already laid off most of its 23 employees, which includes six lawyers and four investigators, along with paralegals and other support staff. <br /><br />“We are down to just those who will physically close the operation,” she said. <br /><br />[Quote] “It is really frightening what we as citizens are going to allow to happen to our condemned.’- Jennifer Greenberg VLRC co-director. [End quote]<br /><br />The Resource Center also has notified the Governor’s Office of its closing, and the center’s present inability to represent or assist in the representation of anyone under a death warrant. <br /><br />“Our board has told us to stop taking new cases, stop investigating, stop doing anything other than what we need to do to close,” Greenberg said. “We have reached a point where in order to fulfill our exiting obligations we have to focus on that and not do anything new.” <br /><br />Greenberg said VLRC is working to transfer ongoing cases and trying to ensure former clients ”have something approaching effective representation in the future.” <br /><br />With the closing of the Resource Center, Greenberg said she thinks post-conviction for Florida death-sentenced inmates with be thrown into turmoil. <br /><br />“I think it is particularly distressing in Florida where we have tried very hard to ensure effective representation and ensure there is some order in the pro-gress,” Greenberg said.<br /><br />The Resource Center performed ser-eral functions. It provided direct repre-<br />[End of Page 1]<br /><br />[Beginning of Page #2]<br />a rate far exceeding that in any prior years,” the petition said. “Whereas CCR’s capacity for accepting affirmed death cases was capped at 26 per year, mean-ing a filing rate of one 3.850 motion ev-ery two weeks, the number of affirmances by this court in calendar year 1994 rose to 46. As those cases move into post-con-viction, they are again overloading CCR’s staff at its present funding level.” <br /><br />CCR has asked the court to make a detailed finding on what constitutes full funding for CCR, to repeal the one-year limit for filing collateral appeals and to stay orders designating counsel and for filing collateral motion.<br /><br /><strong>The Bar’s</strong><br />Rinaman chaired the Bar committee in the 1980s that was asked by the Federal/State Judicial Council to find volunteers to handle appeals for inmates awaiting execution. <br /><br />“For about three years the Bar carried the ball single-handedly,” he recalled. <br /><br />In 1985 the Florida legislature created CCR to provide direct representation to death-sentenced individuals in post con-viction proceedings and the Volunteer Lawyers’ Resource Center was created in 1988 in an attempt to alleviate a case backlog. <br /><br />[Quote] ‘I think the Bar is going to be called upon to play a role. The question is, what role?’- James Rinaman, Former Bar President. [End Quote] <br /><br />“Over the years we have developed a program that is barely adequate, and now without the Resource Center we will be back in a situation where we don’t have an adequate program,” Rinaman said. <br /><br />Supreme Court Justice Ben F. Overton asked the Board of Governors at its February meeting to help find lawyers to take cases that can’t be handled by CCR Rinaman expects the Bar to again hear from the Supreme Court to set up a meeting to determine what to do next.<br /><br />“It is not going to be an easy task, but I’m sure we are all up to it,” Rinaman said. “And in the name of going back to true federalism, maybe we will figure out a way to do it.”<br />[End of Page #2]<br /><br />[Start of Page #3]<br />sentation for inmates seeking collateral review in cases where CCR has a con-flict, or where CCR lawyers are over-loaded. The center also recruited volunteers to represent death row inmates in post-conviction matters. As an inducement to attract volunteers, the Resources center provided research, con-sultation and investigation services. <br /><br />“I have relied, totally, on the investigative and logistical resources of the Florida Volunteer Lawyers’ Resource Center,” Said Vermont law professor Michael Mello, who has represented several death row inmates in Florida, including Joe Spaziano, who is currently under a death warrant. ”The key to effective capital appellate work is not being a good researcher on case law; the key is being a good gumshoe investigator of fact–or being able to rely on the investigative skills of a law office like VLRC.” <br /><br />Greenberg said for a decade the legal community in Florida had an understanding that the people sentenced to death must have lawyers.<br /><br />“It really is a very sad day when not only are we faced with the prospect of having unrepresented people under death warrant, but we are really losing that incredible opportunity to bring in sole practitioners and bring in civil law-yers,” Greenberg said. “It really is fright-ening what we as citizens are going to allow to happen to our condemned.<br /><br /><strong>CCR Impact<br /></strong><br />CCR Minerva doesn’t know how many death row inmates will wind up without representation because of the closing the Resource Center.<br /><br />“We were already staggering under the load of the combination of the one-year time limit for filing collateral appeals, the unprecedented number of affirmances in 1994 by the Florida Supreme Court, and now this on top of it,” Minerva said. “This is the third major occurrence that has really affected the way we provide services.” <br /><br />Minerva said he would like the Resource Center’s volunteers to continue representing the clients they do now, but said CCR is unable to offer them the kind of support the Resource Center provided. <br /><br />“For me to try to tell them to stay the course when I don’t have anything to of-fer is not really very helpful,” Minerva said. “I think each of those volunteers is going to have to assess their own situa-tions and see if they can stay or not.” <br /><br />CCR has petitioned the Supreme Court to drop the one-year limit for filing collateral appeals, adopted following a 1991 report of the Supreme Court Committee on Post-Conviction Relief in Capital Cases. <br /><br />The agency also asked the court to find that CCR is not fully funded and to stay its orders for designating council and fil-ing Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.850 motions in specific cases. <br /><br />The supreme Court Committee on Post- Conviction Relief found that for the process to work, counsel had to be assigned quickly following the end of direct appeals. The committee recommended that counsel be appointed within 30 days after the last direct appeal, and that a one-year limit be placed on filing collateral appeals, assuming that CCR would be funded to meet that deadline. <br /><br />The rule went into effect January 1, 1994, and the court said it would review the rule this year.</p> <p>CCR operations were boosted by the legislature in 1993, based on an estimate of handling around 24 new cases per year. <br /><br />The problem, the CCR said, is that while the office budget was increased 50 percent, the client caseload has increased 69 percent and that figure was set to rise to 76 percent when five more cases were assigned. <br /><br />And the caseload continues to be above projections. <br /><br />”[A]fter January 1, 1994, death sentences were affirmed on direct appeal at <br /><br />[End of Page #3]</p> Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Parise, Rebecca Notes Additional information regarding your item. This content will not be viewable in the Public View. These Newspaper clippings at the top of the page seemed to be out of order, not sure if I was allowed to change the order of them or not, so I left it in the order that they came in when I transcribed them. That is why some words at the end of pages are cutoff and do not seem to match up with the next page. Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Volunteer Lawyers Resource Center's budget eliminated Subject The topic of the resource Capital Punishment Rinaman, James C. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Killian, Mark D. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Killian, Mark D. "Volunteer Lawyers Resource Center's budget eliminated"The Florida Bar News, September 15th, 1995. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1995-09-15 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 3 JPGs 300 DPI Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Tallahassee, FL Language A language of the resource English Description An account of the resource This newspaper was describing how volunteer lawyer programs are being shut down due to lack of funding. There are other programs besides CCR that are trying to help prisoners on death row be represented in court. There has also been a dramatic increase in the amount of inmates who need a lawyer for criminal punishment charges in Florida. Budget Capital punishment. death penalty lawyers Representation for Inmates Volunteer Lawyers https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/947dd70c6d9b991d58d605de8a8ed09f.jpg 973e8e3fad62451a946bffb7d88c8fbb https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/540d35160035eecc47f7e1f22ddec544.jpg 164311b72d0b7e50e15358041221889e https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/b415b0ed37076ab6eb0e059ca71e8816.jpg c01404625591ceca5823f6de35f53d5b Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Roszell, William Text Any textual data included in the document <div> <div>[start of the first page] </div> <div></div> [Text above title]</div> <div>HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MR. SPAZIANO</div> <div></div> <div>[Title]</div> <div>Court Gives ‘Crazy Joe’ 11th-Hour Reprieve</div> <div></div> <div>[subtext below title]</div> <div>A lawyer makes his case in the press, convincing hard-bitten editors of the client’s innocence.</div> <div></div> <div>BY LINDA GIBSON</div> <div>SPECIAL TO THE NATIONAL LAW JOURNAL</div> <div></div> <div>[start of the first column] </div> <div></div> <div>CONDEMNED PRISONER Joseph Spaziano gambled that the press could keep the state from executing him. So far, he’s won. On Sept. 12, his 50th birthday, the Florida Supreme Court granted him a stay of execution and ordered a lower court hearing to be scheduled by Nov. 15. He was to have been electrocuted Sept. 21. </div> <div></div> <div>His pro bono attorney, Vermont Law School Prof. Michael Mello, bet Mr. Spaziano’s life on resourceful reporters and eloquent editorials. Sparked by a column Professor Mello wrote for the Miami Herald, the newspaper interviewed the main witness against Mr. Spaziano. The witness told reporter Lori Rozsa that he’d been a drug-addled delinquent teenager who had concocted his story at the prodding of investigators during hypnosis sessions. Florida Gov. Lawton Chiles issued a stay of execution 12 days before the inmate’s June 27 date with Old Sparky. But on Aug. 24, the governor reversed himself and issued a fifth death warrant based on the confidential statements of newly found witnesses whom he has refused to identify publicly.</div> <div></div> <div>The odds that Mr. Spaziano would beat this lat-<br /> <div>[end of the first column] </div> <div></div> <br /> <div>[start of the second column] </div> <div>est warrant were as slim as the evidence that put him on death row 19 years ago.</div> </div> <div></div> <div>In 1975, police charged “Crazy Joe” Spaziano, a member of the Outlaws motorcycle gang in Orlando, with the 1973 rape-torture slaying of 18-year-old hospital clerk Laura Lynn Harberts. Her remains were found in a rural garbage dump along with those of another still-unidentified victim. The prosecution’s sole evidence was the testimony of Anthony DiLisio, who said Crazy Joe took him to the dump to view the corpses and described how he had tortured the girls by showing them pieces of their bodies that he had sliced off. State v. Spaziano, 393 So.2d 1119 (Fla. Sup. Ct. 1981).</div> <div></div> <div>Sensational though it was, even prosecutor Claude Van Hook acknowledged Mr. DiLisio’s testimony was the state’s total case against Mr. Spaziano. “If you don’t believe Tony DiLisio,” he told the jury at the 1975 trial, “then find this defendant not guilty in five minutes.”</div> <div></div> <div>Jurors deadlocked twice in six hours. Finally, they came back with a guilty verdict but recommended life in prison. Seminole County Circuit Court Judge Robert McGregor overruled them and sentenced Mr. Spaziano to death. Jurors didn’t know, the judge told reporters later, that the defendant had a previous conviction for rape.</div> <div></div> <div></div> <div><strong>Harbored a Grudge</strong></div> <div></div> <div>They also didn’t know, however, that Mr. DiLisio’s testimony had been elicited by hypnosis sessions with a practitioner whose work in other cases had been questioned. In 1985, Florida banned testimony based on hypnosis as unreliable but failed to make the ban retroactive. Mr. DiLisio also had made heavy use of hallucinogenic drugs as a teenage and <br /> <div>[end of the second column] </div> <div></div> <br /> <div>[start of the third column] </div> <div>had harbored a grudge against Mr. Spaziano over the latter’s relationship with his stepmother, defense lawyers say.</div> </div> <div><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>Professor Mello and other attorneys raised these points during years of stay applications and briefs.<br /><br /></div> <div><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>“None of that made the slightest difference,” he said, citing rules that prohibit state and federal courts from reviewing evidence that wasn’t raised at trial. “Because of all this, no court has ever ruled on the merits of Mr. Spaziano’s evidence demonstrating his innocence.”<br /><br /></div> <div>By the spring of this year, every legal recourse had been exhausted. With a fourth death warrant sign had been exhausted. With a fourth death warrant sign and an execution date set, Professor Mello gave up the law and sought help from a highly reluctant source Miami Herald editor Gene Miller.<br /><br /></div> <div>“People thought I’d lost my mind. The Herald is an extremely conservative institution,” said Professor Mello. “They’re in favor of the death penalty. But I figured if I could convince the Herald, I could convince anyone with an open mind.”</div> <div></div> <div>[End the first page]</div> <div><br />[Start the second page]</div> <div><br />[small text on the right side of the image]</div> <div>AP/WIDE WORLD PHOTOS</div> <div><br />[Text below image]</div> <div>Turned 50: The stay came on Joseph Spaziano’s birthday.</div> <div><br /><br /></div> <div>[text in box]</div> <div><strong>CASE AT A GLANCE</strong></div> <div>Venue: Florida Supreme Court</div> <div>CONDEMNED PRISONER: Joseph “Crazy Joe” Spaziano</div> <div>DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Prog. Michael Mello of Vermont Law School</div> <div>SUMMARY: Mr. Spaziano, scheduled for execution Sept. 21, was given another reprieve when the Florida Supreme Court ordered a hearing into the recantation of the main witness against him. The witness told a reporter that he had concocted his testimony at the prodding of investigators.</div> <div>[End second image]</div> <div><br />[Start the third page]</div> <div><br />[Start the first column]</div> <div>Mr. Miller’s skepticism as a reporter is legendary. In 1976, he won a second Pulitzer Prize for his reporting on the case of Wilbert Lee and Freddie Pitts. They’d spent years on Florida’s death row for a murder that hadn’t committed, until someone else confessed. After Mr. Millers 1875 book “Invitation to a Lynching,” he was deluged with requests from inmates and attorneys who wanted him to look at their cases, too. He said he never expected to see another one like Pitts and Lee.</div> <div></div> <div><strong>Read Transcripts</strong></div> <div>But Mr. Miller agreed to take a phone call from Professor Mello after the lawyer enlisted the aid of a friend who approached Mr. Miller’s daughter. The editor agreed to read a chapter about the Spaziano case in a book Professor Mello was writing on death row representation. Then Mr. Miller asked to see the trail transcript, police reports and tapes of Mr. DiLisio’s hypnosis sessions. On Friday afternoon of Memorial Day weekend, Mr. Miller dropped it all off with another legendary skeptic, investigator Warren Holmes of Holmes Polygraph Services Inc., in Miami.<br /><br /></div> <div>Mr. Holmes has worked with the Herald for 30 years. He’s participated in such cases as the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and President Kennedy and is known for his work on the Pitts and Lee case. <br /><br /></div> <div>He wasn’t happy about Mr. Miller dumping a load of papers on him just before a holiday weekend, but he expected to spend no more than half an hour on them before concluding that Mr. Spaziano was guilty. More than 10 hours later, however, the investigator called Professor Mello. “He told me that he had reviewed between 1,200 and 1,400 transcripts in his time, and he had thought that three men were innocent: Pitts, Lee and Joesph Spaziano,” said Professor Mello.<br /><br /></div> <div>Mr. Holmes next went to the Herald: “I told them there was something radically wrong with the case.”</div> <div>Mention in the records of hypnotist Joe B. McCawley set off bells. Mr. McCawley had helped convict Messrs. Pitts and Lee through a dramatic, but suspect “hypnosis” session of a witness conducted right in the courtroom. Psychologists and psychiatrists have viewed Mr. McCawley’s sessions with Mr. DiLiso with skepticism.<br /><br /></div> <div>“We found the hypnotist is a guy with a very checkered record,” said Herald state desk editor John Pancake. “The key thing you can see looking at the file was [Spaziano] was convicted on hypnotically enhanced testimony. That’s no longer admissible.”<br /><br /></div> <div>Mr. McCawley now is director of the Ethical Hypnosis Training Center in Orlando. Reacting to comments about his work in the case, he said “I would expect that. Ignorance breeds a lot of contempt.”<br /><br /></div> <div></div> <div><strong>Wrote Column</strong></div> <div></div> <div>But before the paper would act, it insisted that Professor Mello write an article about the case. Editors also dictated that the lawyer had to mention within the first few paragraphs that his 70 clients on death row, Mr. Spaziano was the only one he thought was innocent. Professor Mello resisted until the paper delivered an ultimatum: no column, no Herald investigation.<br />[end of the first column]<br /><br />[Start of the second column]</div> <div>Professor Mello capitulated. Mr. Miller edited the column and then took an extraordinary step. Instead of treating the story competitively, he arranged to have it run simultaneously June 4 in the Herald, the St. Petersburg Times and the Orlando Sentinel. He also called syndicated columnists James J. Kilpatrick, who responded with a column published June 8 calling on Governor Chiles to issue clemency.</div> <div><br />Meanwhile, Herald reporter Ms. Rozsa found Mr. Dilisio, now a sober, 38-year-old part-time preacher, in Pensacola. On her third attempt to talk to him, he let her in and spilled his guts.</div> <div><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>He didn’t remember Crazy Joe taking him to the dump. <br /><br />He didn’t remember the hypnosis, the trail and his testimony. “How do I know what I said back then was reliable? Especially if it came out under hypnosis,” he said. Mr. DiLisio’s recantation, published June 11, fell like a bomb on the seemingly unalterable course of events that follow the signing of a death warrant. Said Mr. Pancake. “We were really stunned.”</div> <div><br />The Herald followed up with a June 13 editorial calling on Governor Chiles to halt the execution. On the 14th, it published a detailed article by Associate Editor Tony Proscio that included excerpts from Mr. DiLisio’s hypnosis sessions. “I’m not crusading to save the life of this one guy,” Mr. Proscio said. “This is about procedure, justice and the integrity of the death penalty.”<br /><br /></div> <div>On June 15, Governor Chiles issued a stay and ordered the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to investigate. In addition to interviewing Mr. DiLision, agents found new witnesses who claimed Mr. DiLisio had talked about viewing the bodies even before he was hypnotized and others who said Mr. Spaziano had admitted the killings to them. Agents promised them confidentially because they feared retaliation from the Outlaws. On that basis, and with the help of a recently passed and little-known exemption from Florida’s tough public records laws, the governor sealed the report and issued a fifth death warrant.<br /><br /></div> <div>While reporters try to get hold of the secret report, Professor Mello and public defense lawyers here are arguing over who will represent Crazy Joe for what might be his final hearing.<br /><br /></div> <div>What happens, he’s decided not to take his client’s case back into federal court, a most unusual tactic that dismays his associates. “What we must do is maximize the pressure on Chiles,” he said. “That means, getting access to the report and it’s underlying materials and exposing them as the product of a whitewash with a foreordained conclusion.<br /><br /></div> <div>“During my 12 years as a capital post-conviction litigator, I swore I would never try any of my cases in the media. Now, I swear I will never try one in court.”</div> <div><br />[End of article]</div> Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Court gives 'Crazy Joe' 11th-hour reprieve Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Gibson, Linda Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Language A language of the resource English Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived The National Law Journal Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 3 JPGs 300 DPI Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1995-09-25 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Miami, FL Subject The topic of the resource Spaziano, Joe Death row inmates--Florida--Case studies. Description An account of the resource “Crazy Joe” Spaziano receives a last-minute stay of execution on his 50th birthday September 25, 1995. In 1975 police charged Joe Spaziano with the 1973 rape-torture slaying of 18-year-old hospital clerk Laura Lynn Harberts. Jurors found Spaziano guilty of all charges but recommended life in prison however, Judge Robert McGregor overruled their ruling and sentenced Mr. Spaziano to death citing a previous rape conviction. Professor Mello and other attorneys raised questions about the case and challenged the ruling in court winning multiple stays of execution. "Crazy Joe" Spaziano death penalty Death sentence Florida Death Row Joe Spaziano Michael A. Mello Michael Allen Mello Michael Mello https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/01a7055b4d1680c77b8ce5188f9043ec.jpg e056f64a315d8ae19075c109f87bda36 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [heading] <br />Spaziano gets new lawyers, judge<br /><br />[subheading]<br />By Beth Taylor <br />Of the Sentinel Staff<br /><br />[start of the first column] <br />Sanford- Joseph “Crazy Joe” Spaziano, who won a stay of execution after a key witness changed his story, will have a new law firm and a new judge at a November hearing. <br /><br />Holland &amp; Knight, the state’s largest law firm, has taken over defense of the biker convicted of the 1973 killing of Orlando hospital clerk Laura Harberts. <br /><br />Meanwhile, Robert McGregor, the retired judge who presided at Spanziano’s 1976 trial, has removed himself from the case after defense lawyers raised questions about his impartiality. <br /><br />The hearing, called to evaluate whether Spaziano deserves a new trial, has been assigned to Seminole Circuit Judge O.H. Eaton, a 52-year-old former prosecutor in his second term. <br />[end of the first column] <br /><br />[start of the second column] <br />Spaziano, 50, was scheduled to die Sept. 21 under his fifth death warrant, but the state Supreme Court postponed the execution because witness Anthony DiLisio now says he lied at the trial in Sanford nearly 20 years ago. <br /><br />DiLisio now denies that Spaziano took him to an Altamonte Springs dump where he saw the mutilated bodies of Harberts and another woman. <br /><br />The Supreme Court ordered the trial court to hold a Sept. 15 hearing. But Spaziano’s lawyer, Vermont law professor Michael Mello, refused to attend or to turn records over to the state’s Office of Capital Collateral Representative, which represents indigents on death row. <br /><br />Mello said he had too little time to prepare and did not trust the CCR. <br /><br />The high court threw Mello off the case, rescheduled the hearing, and asked McGregor to preside. But the CCR asked for a new judge, citing <br />[end of the second column] <br /><br />[start of the third column] <br />McGregor’s public comments about the case in recent newspaper articles. <br /><br />John Dean Moxley, chief judge of the Seminole-Brevard circuit, reassigned the case after talking with McGregor. <br /><br />“We talked it over, and he thought it was a good motion,” Moxley said Wednesday. <br /><br />Holland &amp; Knight was Mello’s second choice to replace him as Spaziano’s lawyer. Miami criminal lawyer Jeff Weiner signed on last week, but withdrew from the case one day later after a disagreement with Mello. <br /><br />“We think everyone, even people who are despised by many people, are entitled to due process,” said Sandy Bohrer of Holland &amp; Knight, which will represent Spaziano at no charge.<br /><br />Bohrer said Mello agreed to turn over his files. Mike Griffin of the Sentinel staff contributed to this report. <br /><br /><em>Mike Griffin of the Sentinel staff contributed to this report.<br /><br />[end of the third column] <br /><br /><br /></em> Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Robertson, Brooke Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Spaziano gets new lawyers, judge Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Language A language of the resource English Subject The topic of the resource Capital punishment Spaziano, Joe Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Taylor, Beth Description An account of the resource A key witness in the trial of Joseph Spaziano, for the murder of Laura Harberts, changed his statement. Spaziano now has a new legal team and the presiding judge has removed himself in fear of impartiality. Spaziano's execution has been postponed and a new trial will take place in the near future. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Taylor, Beth , “Spaziano gets new lawyers, judge.” Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 JPG 300 DPI Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Sanford, FL capital punishment Joe Spaziano Michael A. Mello Michael Mello https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/a1c8c1486997650064e8f392793a81c3.jpg b7eb9f3c7afbbc93fb9c794090a46c67 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [heading] <br />An Outlaw's road <br /><br />[subheading] <br />By Bruce Vielmetti Times Staff Writer <br /><br />[start of the first column] <br />TAMPA -- Clarence Smith wears many marks of an Outlaw. <br /><br />He's got the tattoos, the Harley-Davidson cap, the vest with the skull and crossed pistons and "1 percenter" patches.<br /><br />He also carries the invisible scars of nine years on Louisiana's death row, and the distinction of being the only inmate to leave there a free man.<br /><br />His story got little publicity last year, in part because Smith avoided it. While someone else might have held news conferences and gone on talk shows to decry injustice or seek redress, Smith got a Harley and followed Outlaw Motorcycle Club advice to "go party for a year and get my mind right."<br /><br />Then authorities in Tampa last fall announced the indictment of 18 Outlaws and associates. At a biker funeral in Buffalo, Smith volunteered to come here and hold down the fort at the group's clubhouse of Busch Boulevard.<br /><br />"I was the freshest (out of prison), the cleanest," Smith said. Life on the road was good, he said, "but you gotta have a purpose."<br /><br />His was to support the "brothers" in the latest trial, and to try to get the Tampa chapter back on its feet. He was a daily spectator at the 41 1/2-month trial, where witnesses and prosecutors suggested his presence was just another part of the Outlaws ongoing criminal enterprise.<br /><br />Smith, 51, recently broke his silence about the Tampa case, his own brush with execution, and that of Joseph "Crazy Joe" <br />[end of the first column] <br /><br />[start of the second column] <br /><strong><br />A report in Spaziano's case is disputed. Page 5B </strong><br /><br />[text continued]<br />Spaziano, 50 another veteran Outlaw whose scheduled death in Florida's electric chair was delayed last week after questions were raised about the fairness of his conviction.<br /><br />"The parallels in the two cases are striking," said Spaziano's attorney, Michal Mello. "I'm hoping the final parallel will be that in a retrial, Joe will be acquitted."<br /><br />Smith said he plans to retire from the Outlaws Motorcycle Club soon, but remain a kind of ambassador for the group, which he says law enforcement has unfairly prosecuted for decades. <br /><br />"They've got us targeted for extinction," Smith says. He blames federal racketeering, or RICO laws, that he says make any unpop-<br />[end of the second column] <br /><br />[start of the third column] <br />ular group subject to persecution. "It's us today and y'all tomorrow." <br /><br /><strong>Zero tolerance</strong> <br /><br />That has been a familiar refrain of Outlaws and their sympathizers. But over the years, law enforcement has prosecuted dozens of members successfully for everything from prostitution to heinous murders.<br /><br />In the recent Tampa case, four Daytona members were found guilty of racketeering conspiracy, and 10 Tampa Bay defendants were found guilty of drug and gun charges. However, half the jury was highly critical of the government's elaborate undercover sting that led to the drug charges. <br /><br />Government witnesses portrayed the <br /><br />Please see <strong>ROAD</strong> 7B <br />[end page] Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Vol. No./Issue No. Volume and issue number for the newspaper (if available) vol. 68, issue 6 Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Harrison, William Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource An Outlaw's Road Description An account of the resource The article is a short account of a "outlaw." Clarence Smith was a convicted felon and spent nine years on death row. His story draws many parallels to Joseph Spaziano's according to Spaziano's lawyer. The article continues to briefly talk on Clarence and his work to ensure fairness in trials for felons from his biker gang. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Vielmetti, Bruce Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Subject The topic of the resource Capital punishment Gang members Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 JPG 300 DPI Language A language of the resource English Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Vielmetti, Bruce, “An Outlaw's Road,” HIST298, https://hist299.umwhistory.org/admin/items/show/236. https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/5610a6453d79eddaeb82d9f6ce824c1b.jpg bfd33fcd8302b711a9b49f3c2015c564 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/c19b485d412c41dff3c25e2fd86769cf.jpg 8d1b7685b8bf6a836aa3338fd7a26784 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [start page one]<br /><br /><span>[heading] </span><br />A witness Says He Lied, But the Execution Is On<br /><br /><span>[subheading] </span><br />Florida Says Case Review Raises No Doubt<br /><br />By Larry Rother<br /><br /><span>[start of the first column] </span><br />MIAMI, Sept. 30- At his trial, no physical evidence linked Joseph Spaziano to the murder of a young Orlando woman, only a drug-addled teenager's lurid testimony about being taken to a garbage dump and shown the sexually mutilated decomposing remains of the victim. That was all the jurors needed to convict him.<br /><br />But now, 20 years later, with Mr. Spaziano's death warrant already signed and the electric chair waiting, that witness, Tony DiLisio, has come forward to say he lied. He fabricated the story, he asserts, to please police investigators, who planted details of his testimony in his memory during hypnosis and promised to spring him from a drug rehabilitation center if he cooperated<br /><br />"I've been bound up in lies, and I finally made a decision to do what's right," Mr, Dilisio, a 38-year-old automobile restore and lay preacher who lives in Pensacola, Fla., said in a telephone interview. "I've been shaking inside for the last 20 years, and it finally came tome to speak the truth. I had a path I had to choose because the man was going to be expected in two weeks."<br /><br />But despite Mt. DiLisio's recanting his story and other irregularities that have been documented but lawyers, private investigators, and <br /><br /><span>[start of the second column] </span><br />newspaper reporters, reexamining the Soaxiano case, Florida is pressing ahead with its effort to electrocute Mr. Spaziano. Earlier this month, Gov. Lawton Chiles denied that "there has been no rush to judgment on this thing," and assailed Mr. Spaziano's lawyer, saying his tactics "look pretty manufactured to me."&nbsp;<br /><br />By his own admission, Mr. Spaziano was anything but a model citizen when he was arrest for the 1973&nbsp;<br />torture-murder of Laura Lynn Harberts, an 18-year-old hospital clerk. President of the Orlando chapter of the Outlaws motorcycle gang, Mr. Spaziano earned the nickname Crazy Joe from his erratic behavior after a truck ran over his head in his hometown of Rochester. He was also well-known in Central Florida as a marijuana dealer, fence, and pimp.<br /><br />But transcripts of the trial reveal that the prosection's case against Mr. Spaziano rested not on his notoriety but almost exclusively on the account of Mt DiLisio, who was a 16-<br /><br /><span>[start of the third column] <br /></span>year-old biker wannabe at the time of the killing. "If we cant get in the testimony of Tony Dilisio, we'd have absolutely no case whatsoever," one prosecutor told the judge on the case at the time.<br /><br />What the jurors were not told was that Mr. DiLiso's testimony had been induced by hypnosis. Nor was the panel informed that his only visit to the murder site was conducted by police, who were frustrated at his inability to recall even the most basic details of the killing under hypnosis.<br /><br />In 1985, a decade after Mt. Spaziano was convicted, the Florida Supreme Court ruled the testimony derived from memories refreshed by hypnosis is so intrinsically suspect as to be inadmissible in court. But, in an effort to avoid a series of lengthy and costly retrials the decision was not applied retroactively, and Mr. Spaziano's conviction stood.<br /><br />"They should have ordered a new trail back the," argued Michael Mello, a lawyer who, until recently, had been representing Mr. Spaziano since the case was handed over to him the day he joined the public defender's office more than a decade ago."This is the only capital case I am aware of in which the critical testimony was the product of hypnosis."<br /><br />Mr. Mello now teaches law at the Vermont Law School in South Royalton, VT., and had continued to handle the Spaziano case on a pro bono basis until the Florida Supreme Court removed him from the case, criticizing him got what the justices called his "flagrant disregard of this Court's procedures and directions."<br /><br />Mr. Mello said in a telephone interview that he had represented more than 70 condemned men but that Mr. Spaziano is the only one he was absolutely convinced was innocent.&nbsp;<br /><br />According to affidavits Mr. Mello has obtained from the jurors in the case, Mr. Spaziano's conviction was obtained despite lingering doubts,<br />[end page one]<br /><br /><span>[start page two]<br /><br />[start of the fourth column] <br /></span>But as Justice Gerald Kogan a member of the Florida Supreme Court who has criticized what he calls the state's "unseemly rush to execute a man," noyed recently, judges in Florida no longer have authority. Instead, the "jury's vote for life imprisonment would be legally binding today," and Mr. Spaziano would automatically be spared the electric chair even if convicted.<br /><br />At the time he was being questioned, Mr. DiLisio was a frequent user of LSD and marijuana who had been sentenced to a drug rehabilitation center and was largely estranged from his family. Police detective took him to see Joe B. McCawley, a hypnotist whose work had been previously discredited in another notorious Florida murder trial.&nbsp;<br /><br />During an initial hypnosis session, the transcript reveals, Mr. DiLisio was not helpful, talking of hearing Mr. Spaziano brag about hiding stolen motorcycles at an orange grove by a lake but supplying no useful details about the Jarberts killing.<br /><br />But two days later after police took him to the garbage dump to "refresh" his memory. Mr. DiLisio<br /><br /><span>[Image of Joseph Spaziano- Associated Press] <br /><br /></span>was again put into a light trance and questioned. This time, after some prodding, was asked about a corpse he said: "I think I saw one," but then described the remains as that of "an old woman" before Mr. McCawley furnished him with the correct details.<br /><br />Mr. DiLisio said that he has known all along that "what I did was bad," but thought that because perjury laws "I would have to go to prison for it if I ever brought the truth forward." He now accuses the police of brainwashing and manipulation him, describing himself as a frightened and confused teen-ager, eager&nbsp;<br /><br /><span>[start of the fifth column] <br /></span>for attention and affection and eager to get out of juvenile detention at any cost.<br /><br />"I was like a fog on a leash, with a bone in front of me," he said. "They liked what I did, and it gave me gratification that I was cooperating with them. I was a disturbed child at that time."<br /><br />Following the public outcry about the case as a result of Mr. DiLisio's recantation in June, Gov. Lawton Chiles issued an indefinite stay of execution pending investigation by the Florida Police Department of Law Enforcement. On Aug. 24, though he signed another death warrant, saying that "this exhaustive review removes any doubt in my mind about the case."&nbsp;<br /><br />Since the death penalty was restored in Florida in 1978, 34 people have died in the electric chair, making the state second only to Texas in the number of executions. During his successful reelection campaign last year, Mr. Chiles, a populist Democrat, was stung on television ads sponsored by a conservative opponent, Republican Jeb Bush, that accused him of being soft on the more 300 convicted killer sitting on the state's death row.<br /><br />Just after Labor Day the Florida Supreme Cout rejected, by a 4-3 voted, a request for an indefinite stay of execution and approved a Sept. 21 execution for Mr. Spaziano in the electric chair at the Florida State prision in Starke, But less than a week later the court partially reversed itself, ordering a hearing on the new evidence by Nov. 15.<br /><br />Mr. Spaziano's case is now being handled by a state agency that presents indigent inmates on death row, and by a Miami law firm.<br /><br />To help the proceedings along, Mr. DiLision has agreed to take a polygraph test, be injected with truth serum to yo cooperate in any other fashion that is requested.<br /><br />"I don't know whether Jow Spaziano is guilty or innocent," Mr. DiLisio said. "but I know that I lied then and that the only thing I have to gain now is a clear conscience. I'm not defensive, I'm not confused. I have no fear, and as long as I speak the truth at all times, I can stand strong, and the truth will prevail."<br />[end of page two]<br /><span><br />[end of article]</span> Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource A witness says he lied, but the execution is on Subject The topic of the resource Death Penalty Witnesses Description An account of the resource A witness in the Spaziano case says that he lied and fabricated the story of Spaziano murdering a young Orlando women. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rother, Larry Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived The New York Times Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1995-10-01 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 300 dpi 2 JPGs Language A language of the resource English Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Miami, Fl https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/08c0dfab3a8795025f7a0361689913e4.jpg 8c56e5e1ed1267a035fe7e1a8ba80b39 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource VLS Prof Doesn't Hide His Feelings Subject The topic of the resource Vermont Law school Professor makes feelings known about court case verdict. Description An account of the resource Vermont Law Professor Michael Mello makes his feelings known regarding the O. J. Simpson court case verdicts. He took a moment during a seminar on preparing a U.S. Supreme Court petition to summon the case. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Marquard, Bryan K. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Valley News Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available History 298 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource October 3, 1995 [based on the date of O.J. verdict decision] Language A language of the resource English Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant South Royalton, VT Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [start page one] <br /><br />[heading] <br />VLS Prof Doesn't Hide His Feelings <br /><br />[subheading] <br />By BRYAN K. MARQUARD Valley News Staff Writer <br /><br />[start of the first column] <br />SOUTH ROYALTON- At Vermont Law School, Professor Michael Mello was teaching a capital punishment seminar a few hours after the verdicts were announced in the O.J. Simpson case.<br /><br />Mello, an expert who has been involved in dozens of capital punishment cases in Florida, makes no secret of his feelings about the Simpson case.<br /><br />A footnote in his <em>curriculum vitae</em>&nbsp;gives a concise list of the major newspapers he has appeared, but notes, "I am pleased to say that I have <em>never</em>&nbsp;been quoted in the Nicole Brown Simpson/Ron Goldman murder trial." <br /><br />Nevertheless, he paused to invoke that case during a seminar that is a clinic on preparing a U.S. Supreme Court <em>certiorari</em>&nbsp;petition on behalf of his client, Joseph Spaziano, who is on death row in Florida for a murder in which the state's chief witness has now recounted his testimony. <br /><br />"We can't let this day pass without a reference to the O. J. Case," Mello told the second- and third-year law students in the seminar. "As it turns out, I have a tie-in to Joe's case." <br /><br />[start of the second column] <br /><br />He then held up an editorial cartoon for the <em>Miami Herald</em>. On one side of the panel, Simpson was dancing, his shackled hands above his head with the shackle breathing. On the other side, Spaziano sat in an electric chair while the governor of Florida threw the switch. Simpson and the governor were smiling; Spaziano's head was covered with a hood and smoke was rising from his body. <br /><br />Above Simpson, the text read, "Los Angeles, CA: Defendant faces voluminous forensic evidence, witnesses, and strong motive, but his case is investigated by a foul-mouthed, egomaniacal, racist cop..."<br /><br />Above Spaziano, it read, "Tallahassee, FL: Defendant faces no forensic evidence, motive, and a main witness who admits to lying after police coerced his incriminating testimony..." <br /><br />The grim, biting humor of the cartoon was mitigated a while later when a student misheard a judge's name that came up in the discussion.<br /><br />"They have another Judge Ito in Florida?" the student asked.<br /><br />"No, Judge Eaton," Mello replied. <br /><br />"There's only one Lance Ito and there's no Dancing Eatons," he said, alluding to the Dancing Itos, a comedy sketch that has become a staple of <em>The Tonight Show</em>. <br /><br />[end of article] Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Morton, Mariah Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource VLS Prof Doesn't Hide His Feelings Subject The topic of the resource Mello, Michael. Simpson, O. J. Description An account of the resource Vermont Law Professor Michael Mello, while teaching a seminar on capital punishment, could not hide his feelings regarding the O. J. Simpson court case verdict. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Marquard, Bryan K. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Valley News Staff Writer Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource October 3, 1995 [according to the O.J. Simpson verdict date] Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Language A language of the resource English Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant South Royalton, VT Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 JPG 300 DPI https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/c0349ce14514e9bb77e1216f8083e0f4.jpg 6f4e495634e0c857c2ffa98de00b8174 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/e1c35c3520d3f3aa0bda9502b171be29.jpg fc759c7bf0133d155e6f328c0e753255 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/c73d4b5be711b4b18df8857dae23a5e5.jpg a307ba8dea7f7dbaf6a2b6d6219cb6e6 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/0dae1f7da640aa010da0b03c56a888e9.jpg e0b3f830b9d6edc9c2f9c1cf71124ba5 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Vol. No./Issue No. Volume and issue number for the newspaper (if available) Sunday Issue from 1995-10-08 Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Silberstein, Michael Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Text Any textual data included in the document <p>[title] Lawyer Stretches The Ethics Envelope [title] <br /><br />[image – Michael Mello] VLS Professor Knows Time Is Running Out For Death Row Client [subtitle] <br /><br />By BRYAN K. MARQUARD Valley News Staff Writer Michael Mello believes that one of his clients – a convicted murderer – is innocent. <br /><br />Such a belief is hardly surprising coming from an appellate attorney who has spent a dozen years keeping this client away from Old Sparky, the nickname for Florida’s electric chair. But Mello, a professor at Vermont Law School, has taken it one step further. <br /><br />Innocence he said, is an attribute Joseph Robert Spaziano does not share with any other condemned man with whom Mello has worked – and he has been closely involved in about 70 death row cases.<br /><br />“I’m saying he’s innocent the old fashioned way, as my mother would put it,” Mello has written. “Joe Spaziano didn’t do the crime, period. This fact makes him unique among my death row clients.” <br /><br />That final phrase, which has appeared in opinion articles he wrote for the Miami Herald, the Valley News and the Vermont Law Review, is a bold statement – one that some legal experts say would never be allowed in a courtroom argument. <br /><br />The decision to publish it presented Mello with a moral dilemma: toe the line of legal ethics, or go all out in an attempt to prevent the execution of a man that he believed “in the marrow of my bones” was innocent. <br /><br />There are many things that make this case unusual. If he were beginning his trip through the court system today, Spaziano would not end up on death row, and in all likelihood would not be convicted. <br /><br />Spaziano was sentenced to be electrocuted for murdering a woman in 1973. According to Florida newspaper accounts, no physical evidence connected him to the crime. He was convicted on the basis of testimony by a teenage boy who only remembered hearing Spaziano talk about the killing after two sessions of hypnosis – and the teen said their conversation took place on a day when they took LSD, smoked marijuana and got drunk. In 976, a jury recommended life in prison, but a judge imposed a death sentence instead. <br /><br />Years later, the Florida Supreme Court decided that so-called hypnotically refreshed testimony is not admissible in trails, but the ruling was applied retroactively and was of no help to [end page] <br /><br />Lawyer Pushes Envelope As Client’s Time Runs Down [title]<br /><br />unable to determine the cause of Harbert’s death. <br /><br />Spaziano has alibi for the day Harbert’s disappeared, and Mello said there are reasons. To begin with, he wasn’t a suspect for two years and its difficult for all but those who keep journals to recall a single day two years later, Mello said. Also, Spaziano was run over by a truck in 1966, and the severe head injury still limits his memory. Brain damage from the accident led to behavior that earned him the nickname Crazy Joe, Mello said. <br /><br />In Florida, death warrants signed by governor are pieces of paper with thick black borders, the better to distinguish them from run-of-the mill government paperwork. During the more than 19 years Spaziano has been on death row, three governors have signed a total of five warrants. <br /><br />When the Florida Supreme Court issued its most recent indefinite stay of execution last month, Spaziano’s head had already been shaved in anticipation of the trip to Old Sparky, Mello called Sept. 12 with the news. It was Spaziano’s 50th birthday – the 20th he has celebrated on death row. <br /><br />The Last Death Row Case [subtitle]<br /><br />But for the book-lined surroundings in the living room of his Wilder home, Mello looked like he could be on death row as he discussed the Spaziano case. He smoked on Camel filtered cigarette after another in an interview punctuated by coughs – a reminder of a battle with pneumonia that Mello waged earlier this year. <br /><br />A carved cigarette holder provided another filter for the nicotine, and is a reminder of another threat to his health. Mello, who is 38, underwent surgery a few months ago for possible cancer of the tongue. The prognosis is good: no cancer was found. <br /><br />The prognosis is not so good for Spaziano. The Florida Supreme Court set an early November date for an evidence hearing, and Mello – along with a capital punishment class he teaches at Vermont Law School – is preparing a certiorari petition for the U.S. Supreme Court. But Spaziano’s case has gone before both courts on various occasions during the past 19 years. <br /><br />After the key witness, Tony Dilisio, recanted his testimony in June, public outcry prompted Florida Gov. Lawton Chiles to issue an indefinite stay of execution until a review of the case could be completed by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Based on that agency’s report, the governor signed another death warrant even though he ordered the report sealed, which is permissible in clemency proceedings. <br /><br />The state supreme court first rejected an appeal for an indefinite stay and set a hearing shortly before the Sept. 21 execution date. But Mello refused to participate, saying he had too little time to prepare and no resources. The gamble paid off: the court instituted an indefinite stay and ordered the November hearing, but it also ordered Mello of the case. <br /><br />That order appears to have had little effect on Mello, whose life and home are consumed with the case; he estimated he has spent about $12,000 of his own money this year on phone bills, materials and court charges while working to save Spaziano. It all may be for naught. Mello’s efforts have resulted in the sentences of many condemned men being commuted to life sentences, but he is icily realistic about his chances this time. Only one other person on Florida’s death row has survived five death warrants, and he was executed on the seventh.<br /><br />“The likely outcome I think is that the evidentiary hearing will happen … and we’ll lose,” Mello said. “Gov. Chiles will sign a new death warrant the day we lose the hearing … So I think he’s got two months.” “Joe’s had two miracles already with the last four months,” he added. “I don’t know if he’s got enough karma left for another one.” Lawyer and client have already discussed one detail: Mello will be present to witness the execution. If it occurs, it will be the first execution Mellow has attended. And Spaziano, he said, is his last capital punishment case.<br /><br />Absolute Opposition [subtitle] <br /><br />Mello said he decision to flout ethics rules in a last-ditch attempt to save Spaziano could be seen as civil disobedience. Although he agonized over the decision to single out Spaziano as an innocent client, Mello has no regrets. <br /><br />He has worked on other death row cases involving better-know clients, among them serial killer Ted Bundy, who was sentenced in December to the electric chair for killing an abortion doctor and his escort in Pensacola Fla. <br /><br />“I absolutely oppose the legal system of capital punishment that operates in the U.S. today,” Mello said. There currently are no circumstances under which his opposition would waver “because any capital punishment that will execute Ted Bundy … will also have the power to execute Joe Spaziano.” <br /><br />“The question everyone ought to be asking themselves about capital punishment isn’t whether you support in the abstract, because that’s irrelevant,” he added. “The question is whether you think the criminal justice system as it exists today is competent and reliable enough to make the right choices in deciding who among us has lost their moral entitlement to live, who among us deserves to die. <br /><br />“And I don’t see how anyone followed the O.J. trial, and certainly no one who has read with anything remotely like an open mind the trial transcripts in Joe Spaziano’s case can support capital punishment.” [end page] <br /><br />Spaziano. Today, a jury’s call for a life sentence is binding, but Mello said Spaziano’s appeal passed through the courts during a brief time when judges were not overruled if they ignored jury recommendations and meted out death sentences. <br /><br />And then there’s the prosecution’s key witness, Tony Dilisio. “if you don’t believe Tony Dilisio, find this defendant not guilty in five minutes,” a newspaper account quoted the prosecutor as telling the jury in 1976. Earlier this summer, Dilisio forcefully recanted his testimony. <br /><br />“Joe has been an incredible victim of bad timing and bad luck,” Mello said in an interview last week.<br /><br />Mello, formerly a public defender in Florida, said proclaiming Spaziano’s innocence at the beginning of an opinion piece for the Miami Herald was necessary to convince the newspaper to report on the case. He sought the involvement of the paper because its reporting had led to the pardons of two death row inmates in the 1970s. Since the opinion piece appeared, stories reported by the Herald, including the witness’s recantation, led some Florida newspapers to call for a reexamination of Spaziano’s conviction and death sentence. First the governor and then Florida Supreme Court ordered temporary delays in his execution. <br /><br />By singling out Spaziano’s innocence in his opinion piece, Mello helped spare a life – at least until next month, when a hearing is scheduled. But by his own admission, he also flouted established rules of legal ethics, and some experts say he potentially cast aspersions on his 69 other death row inmates – about a dozen of whom have already been executed. <br /><br />“It certainly could potentially have legal ramifications for me and professional ramifications for me since me saying that, I think is a fairly clear violation of Florida’s ethics rules governing the behavior of lawyers.” said Mello, who became involved in Spaziano’s case while handling capital appeals in Florida during the 1980s. <br /><br />Several legal ethics experts interviewed by the Valley News said that a published statement such as Mello’s could raise a host of issues, such as potential breach of confidentiality by suggesting that he had personal knowledge of the guilt or innocence of his clients and was publicly revealing the information. Others cited a potential for conflict of interest in playing the needs of one client against dozens of others, or the possibility that by going to the media, Mello skirted a rule that prohibits lawyers from personally vouching in court for the guilt or innocence of a client. <br /><br />The bluntest remarks came from Geoffrey Hazard, a trustee professor at the University of Pennsylvania. The public comment violated “the spirit of the rule that a lawyer may not make a personal affirmation concerning the guilt or innocence of a client,” he said. The second problem, he added, is that such as statement “condemns everybody else that he’s represented in a capital case.”<br /><br />But some of the experts also said that Mello’s potential lapses may well have been called for in a situation such as Spaziano’s, which has taken several unusual legal twists. <br /><br />“In my mind, he gets pretty high marks for going to the wall for his client,” said Jim Duggan, the chief appellate defender for the state of New Hampshire, who teaches at Franklin Pierce Law Center.<br /><br />“In my book, it’s a minor peccadillo if at all,” said the Rev. Rebert Drinan, founder of the Georgetown University Journal of Legal Ethics. “I’m prepared to give him absolution from whatever sin he might have committed.” <br /><br />And David E. Kendall, who spent five years in the 1970s working for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, said of Mello: “He’s a resourceful, dedicated and creative anti-capital punishment lawyer.” Kendall, who currently is counsel to President Bill Clinton on the Whitewater matter, said Mello is “held in the highest regard by his colleagues.”<br /><br />Mello said that, to date, none of this former death row clients has expressed anger or concern over his published statement. There has been some adverse reaction from colleagues and former colleagues, however, which he characterized as: “How can you sell your other 69 clients down the road?’ … That’s a good question. It’s a damm good question that I don’t have a real good answer for.” The only explanation, he said, is that the statement is true, and that publishing it was the only way to get the necessary media attention. <br /><br />As of Friday, no complaints had been filed with Florida Bar association, a spokes-women said; Mello remains a member in good standing. <br /><br />A 50th Birthday Present [subtitle] <br /><br />In many newspaper accounts of this case, Spaziano is referred to in headlines as “Crazy Joe” – a nickname he picked up during his days a local chapter leader of the Outlaws motorcycle gang. <br /><br />A police mug shot from the early 1970s shows him with the thick flowing hair and beard of a biker – a stark contrast to the file photograph Florida newspapers run of the victim, Laura Lynn Harberts, and attractive, 18-year-old hospital clerk from Orlando.</p> <p>Police did not focus on Spaziano as a murder suspect for two years. By that time, he had been charged and convicted of brutally raping and assaulting a 16-year-old girl – a crime he also says he did not commit, and one that Mello also hopes to overturn. Authorities said that crime bore similarities to the Harberts murder, but newspaper accounts note that a medical examiner was [end page] <br /><br /></p> Opposition To Capital Punishment Goes Back To Teen Years [title] <br />By Bryan K. Marquard Valley News Staff Writer <br /><br />The play Inherit the Wind suggested a pair of potential career pats to Michael Mello when he was a high school student in Virginia. He was impressed by the Clarence Darrow and H.L. Mencken characters and weighed the options of whether to pursue law or journalism.<br /><br />“I ultimately decided that I wasn’t a good enough writer to be a journalist,” he said, “so I ended up going to law school.” Before leaving high school, however, the teenager came across a passage in his readings that planted the seeds for what has become a career-long opposition to capital punishment as it is practiced in this country. <br /><br />“For as long as I remember, I’ve had a visceral opposition to capital punishment,” Mello said. “it’s interesting, I can trace that back to a moment in high school when I read somewhere that the chemical compound that California uses in its gas chamber is the same chemical with the same trade name – Zyklon B – that the Nazis used at Auschwitz.”<br /><br />“I wanted to be real clear about this – that’s a totally irrational connection to make particularly in light of the Johnnie Cochran atrocities over the last week or so,” he added, referring to the lawyer for O.J. Simpson who compared Los Angeles Police Detective Mark Fuhrman to Adolph Hitler. “Any parallel to the Holocaust, but especially those sort of facile ones, I find just revolting and deeply, deeply offensive.” <br /><br />Nevertheless, as a teenager in the 1970s, reading that simple fact about a deadly chemical had a significant impact. Mello is Jewish, and the Holocaust was a subject of discussion when he was growing up.<br /><br />“A good part of the reason why I read as much about the Holocaust as I did starting in high school and continuing up as recently as last night was that part of my mother’s family was killed, most likely in Warsaw ghetto or Auschwitz,” he said.<br /><br />“It’s something that is very much a part of my own sort of emotional and psychic landscape,” he added.“It’s something I’ve never written about – and I’m not sure that I ever will write about it – but it’s never far from my consciousness.” <br /><br />Mello was born in Washington and grew up in northern Virginia. His parents worked for the government, although his memory – a precise tool when applied to his clients’ cases – is somewhat vague on this point. “My mother was a secretary and father was something in government,” he said. “I’ve never really been clear on what that was.” <br /><br />After graduating from Mary Washing College in Fredericksburg, Va., with a degree in history and philosophy, and from the University of Virginia law school, his first job provided the experience that sparked his interest in capital punishment cases and cemented his opposition. In 1982, Mello became the so-called “death clerk” for Judge Robert S. Vance of the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit. “Which meant that all of the death cases that came into his chambers came through me,” Mello said.<br /><br />A year later, he joined the capital appeals division of the Florida Defender’s office in West Palm Beach, Fla. Mello felt that, coming from a working class background, he had “an obligation to give something back” through public service. He also harbored a measure of guilt because of a certain case from his year as a clerk. Mello was told to draft an opinion for Vance upholding the constitutionality of a particular death sentence. The prisoner, Ivon Ray Stanley, “clearly was retarded, clearly was a follower in a bad crime – but a fairly run of the mill felony murder case,” Mello said. <br /><br />“Ivon Ray Stanley probably will be count one of the indictment against me that’s going to end me up in hell,” he said. “I agonized over the opinion.” He briefly considered not writing the opinion or resigning, but friends said “if you quit and walk away, someone else will come in and do it, and won’t have you sensibilities, won’t even realize that this case is a problem.” <br /><br />His first assignment during his first week as a public defender was an appeal for Joseph Spaziano, a convicted murderer on death row. More than a dozen years after Mello encountered the case, he draws a narrative thread from the Ivon Ray Stanley decision to his work on behalf of Joseph Spaziano to a decision to walk away from his work as a lawyer in death row appeals. Spaziano, Mello said, in his final battle. <br /><br />“It’s the old liberal’s dilemma: To what extent should you buy into a system that’s not fair? And I knew that I was unfair then,” Mello said. “I concluded more recently because of Joe Spaziano’s case … that the system’s not just unfair, but it’s evil. And the way Joe Spaziano’s case was treated by the courts really was the final push that led me to a personal decision not to participate in any other (capital punishment) cases.” [end page] Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Lawyer Stretches The Ethics Envelope Subject The topic of the resource Capital punishment--United States Description An account of the resource A reporting in the "Valley News" over the legal dispute surrounding Michael Mello's claim that his client, Joeseph Robert Spazionao, is innocent. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Marquard, Bryan Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Bryan Marquard, "Lawyer Stretches the Ethical Envelope," Valley News (West Lebanon, NH) October 8, 1995. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1995-10-08 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 4 jpg 300 dpi Language A language of the resource English Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Florida New Hampshire Innocent Joeseph Robert Spazionao Michael Mello https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/5f0a233f088aadf6da81a772b7c032ab.jpg 2099bf09d794ac930221d09d0c579f76 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/cca1408ee1af19bb73d70782375bed2f.jpg 8d2a0ee5192d1ef9d2abaf000526c779 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/81ad9a4b7f615b2509bc307c38922fbf.jpg 973cb8a2e7ff0f4927b09451e21bdac0 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [Title] Justices chided for overturning 5 high-profile homicide case [Author] Mike Donoghue Montpelier -- A recent string of convictions overturned in several high-profile cases, including five homicides, has no common thread and might be rooted in the independent nature of the Vermont Supreme Court. Michael A. Mello, a Vermont Law School professor, and David Putter, a Montpelier lawyer, are among the legal scholars giving the high court top marks for independence in tough cases. "There does not appear to be a common thread," Putter said. "Obviously, they have a lot of cases they didn't overturn." Putter said he doubts the justices enjoy overturning cases, but have a duty to make sure trials are fair. The more complex the case, the more likely an error is made, he said. Overturning five homicide cases in one year has netted the court public criticism from the family of victims, jurors, one prosecutor and even Gov. Howard Dean. Records indicate that 15 out of 22 homicide convictions have been upheld in recent years. The criticism fails to loosen the lips of Vermont Chief Justice Frederic Allen. Allen said recently he never comments on cases even when they are considered closed because they sometimes have a way of being reopened. Mello said the homicide reversals by the Supreme Court are based on different fact patterns. Mello, at the request of The Burlington Free Press, recently reviewed the reversals in four homicide cases: Rebecca Durenleau in Chittenden County, Christopher Bacon in Windham [end page one] [start page two]County, and Monica Pollard and Wayne Delisle in Franklin County. The Supreme Court said: -In Durenleau, the verdict was incorrectly based on the jury's conjecture. -In Bacon, the trial judge erred when he explained the concept of intent. -In Pollard, there was inadequate proof in the court record to show he was competent to enter a guilty plea. -In Delisle, the judge erred in his instructions on whether the defendant could be found guilty of manslaughter, a lesser offense. Mello praises the court for overturning Delisle's murder conviction. Mello noted he is working on the appeal for a Florida death row inmate and the U.S. Supreme Court rejected the same argument. Mello, who has taught at the law school in South Royalton for eight years, said the Vermont court, in overturning other cases, is a strong believer in protecting rights of citizens, especially when it comes to search and seizure. Reaction and change Former Chittenden County State's Attorney William Sorrell was among those livid by the high court's overturning the 1992 conviction of Rebecca Durenleau for helping her then-lover Harmon Olmstead kill her husband, Michael Durenleau, in 1985. The high court said the jurors had used too much circumstantial evidence to convict the woman and had to leap too far to connect The justices [image - Frederic Allen, labeled: Name: Chief Justice Frederic Allen Date of birth: May 31, 1926 Residence: Shelburne Family: Wife, Karen McAndrew; two sons and two daughters Background: Born and educated in Burlington. 1951 graduate of Boston University Law School, Burlington alderman, private practice with Dinse, Allen and Erdmann 1951-84. Named chief justice in 1984.] [image - Ernest Gibson, labeled: Name: Associate Justice Ernest Gibson Date of birth: Sept. 23, 1927 Residence: Montpelier Family: Wife, Charlotte; one son and two daughters Background: Born and educated in Brattleboro. 1956 graduate of Harvard Law School, former state's attorney and legislator from Windham County, chairman of the Public Service Board in 1963, elected a Superior Court judge in 1972. Appointed to Supreme Court in February 1983. ] [image - John Dooley, labeled: Name: Associate Justice John Dooley Date of birth: April 10, 1944 Residence: South Burlington Family: Wife, Sandra Background: Born and educated in Nashua, N.H. 1968 graduate of Boston College Law School, head of Vermont Legal Aid, secretary of administration for governor. Appointed to the court in June 1987.] [end page two] [start page three] her to the death. In a rare move, the court set Durenleau free instead of ordering a new trial. Although the case angered the public, there appeared to be no doubt in the mind of the high court. The diverse court had no dissenting opinions. Sorrell, who has been mentioned as a possible successor to Allen when he retires in the spring, said the court did not have the benefit of hearing the testimony or noting the demeanor of witnesses. Sorrell's criticism of the court is rare among lawyers for two reasons: The Supreme Court is in charge of discipline, and most losing lawyers know they are likely to have more cases before the justices. Nothing can be done when the court says there was too little evidence, as in Durenleau's case. After other Vermont Supreme Court rulings, the Legislature has passed new laws to overrule the effect a court decision can have in future cases. Former Attorney General M. Jerome Diamond said he won a workman's compensation claim on appeal and the next session of the Legislature, lawmakers passed a law prohibiting others from winning under similar circumstances. Putter agrees with Diamond. Putter noted the court can make "bad law," as when it upheld the conviction of the killer of policeman Edward Battick, but ruled the mandatory life sentence actually meant up to life and parole was available immediately. The Legislature later passed laws establishing new sentences for first- and second-degree murder and allowed for life sentences without parole. Diamond said he would not be surprised if the Legislature were asked to eliminate the three-year statute of limitations for manslaughter because of the Delisle case and a similar Chittenden County case. [image - James Morse, labeled: Name: Associate Justice James Morse Date of birth: Sept. 11, 1940 Residence: Charlotte Family: Wife, Gretchen; two daughters Background: Born in New York City and educated in Eastchester, N.Y; 1969 graduate of Boston University Law School, defender general and Superior Court judge. Appointed to Supreme Court in 1988.] [image - Denise Johnson, labeled: Name: Associate Justice Denise Johnson Date of birth: July 13, 1947 Residence: Shrewsbury Family: Husband, Thomas Wies; a son and a daughter Background: Born and raised in Wyandotte, Mich. 1974 graduate of University of Connecticut Law School, Vermont Law School teacher, assistant attorney general 1980-88, Vermont Human Rights Commission 1988-90. Appointed to the Supreme Court in December 1990.] [end page three] Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newpaper Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Hobbs, Sophia Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Justice chided for overturning 5 high-profile homicide cases Subject The topic of the resource Homicide--Law and legislation Vermont. Supreme Court Description An account of the resource In 1995, five homicide convictions are overturned by the Vermont Supreme Court. Michael Mello praises justices for overturning murder convictions. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Donoghue, Mike Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Donoghue, Mike. "Justices chided for overturning 5 high-profile homicide cases." The Burlington Free Press, October 8, 1995. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1995-10-08 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 3 JPGs 300 DPI Language A language of the resource English Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Montpelier, VT homicide Michael Mello Vermont Vermont Supreme Court https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/c09772a2879fa1a07326d2b0d8d08eff.jpg cf26c69aa48c7b1b71160e25f5d8cd48 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document <span>[title] Lawyer takes Spaziano case to top U.S. court&nbsp;<br /><br /></span><span>[subtitle] Michael Mello seeks an FDLE report that he says can help the ex-Outlaws motorcycle member.<br /><br />By Jim Leusner Of The Sentinel Staff<br /><br /></span>A lawyer who was booted from representing convicted killer Joseph Spaziano by the Florida Supreme Court is back again. <br /><br />Vermont law professor Michael Mello said Monday he was asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review the state court's rulings in the case. He again is seeking access to a Florida Department of Law Enforcement report he says has evidence to aid his client's defense. <br /><br />Spaziano, a former Outlaws motorcycle gang member, is seeking a new trial in the 1973 murder of Orlando hospital clerk Laura Harberts. The state Supreme Court removed Mello from the case last month after he refused to attend a hearing in Sanford or turn over files to other lawyers ordered to represent Spaziano. <br /><br />A key witness who testified that Spaziano showed him Herberts' body at a dump recanted his story in June to the Miami Herold, prompting police and court reviews. The witness, Anthony DiLisio, insist that he lied at the urging of police and his father. <br /><br />The law firm of Holland &amp; Knight and Orlando defense attorney James Russ volunteered to represent Spaziano at a hearing scheduled for the next month in Sanford, but that hasn't stopped Mello from continuing his fight. <br /><br />"There is no doubt whatsoever that I am Joe's counsel of record in the U.S. Supreme Court case," said Mello, adding the state court cannot bar his federal appearance. He maintains that Spaziano, 50, still wants him as his lawyer. <br /><br />Mello said he wants the high court to order the release of the FDLE report, which he contends Gov. Lawton Chiles has wrongfully kept secret. <br /><br />He also maintains that Florida Attorney General Bob Butterworth has a conflict of interest in prosecuting the case while also having a vote on clemency proceedings presented by the governor. Mello said he may file a motion challenging his removal from Spaziano's state court appeal. <br /><br />Greg Thomas of Holland &amp; Knight said his office was concentrating on the Sanford hearing and would not comment on the appeal. <br /><br />"It's a different court and a different issue," he said. <br /><br />Chiles has refused to grant Spaziano clemency. He also has refused to release the FDLE report, citing concern for the safety of witnesses and he confidentially of the clemency process. Chiles' counsel, Dexter Douglass, said he was surprised by Mello's actions, since clemency is authorized by the Florida Constitution, and is not a federal question. <br /><br />Douglas said there was nothing in the FDLE report that he believes would exonerate Spaziano. He also said that Butterworth's office has not seen report. <span> [end page]</span> Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Pace, Sam Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Lawyer takes Spaziano cases to top U.S. court Subject The topic of the resource Spaziano murder trial Description An account of the resource Newspaper article from October 10, 1995 about the murder trial of Spaziano. The articles talks about Michael Mello's plea to the United States Supreme Court review the courts ruling. Stating that there is important evidence that can aid in Spaziano's defense Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Leusner, Jim Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1995-10-10 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Language A language of the resource English https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/8c7432c06bdca41733ab9e1f09e773c0.jpg d669badf92cdeefb0c2361ef570309b2 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/e522d08aaa4b181e3e7faac475dcce75.jpg 475431411119e1cbc0bd44ba45d919c5 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document (First Page) Southern Vermont Rutland Daily Herald Friday Morning, October 23, 1995 Windsor, Windham & Bennington P Will He Testify? By John Gregg Southern Vermont Bureau SPRINGFIELD - Park View Road is a pretty lane. Cow pastures and two upscale homes flank the narrow road that runs south for six-tenth of a mile off the Skitchewaug Trail. From a plow turn-around at the end of the road, you can enjoy a sweeping view of the Black River Valley well past Okemo Mountain. It would be the perfect place for a lovers’ tryst, but for the two “no parking signs” that were recently installed. And for something else, too. Parke View Road is where Jennifer Knight Little was murdered the evening of Feb. 4, 1994. She was stabbed six times and left to die in a snow bank. This week probably Tuesday morning, six women and nine men will visit the lane. They are the Jury in the Adam Corliss first-degree muder trial, and so far they have heard a week’s worth of testimony from witnesses for the prosecution. (Second Item) Trial Continued from Page 6 Chris Frappiner and the late Paul Kelly, contract investigators for the defender general’s office, spent dozens of hours developing a case against Durphey. And Donahue, a former Windsor Country prosecutor, is attempting to call several witnesses who say Durphey threatened them by claiming to have murdered Little. The defence also says it can knock holes in Durphey’s alibi, that he was having a party at home with friends when the murder occurred. Police describe Durphey a “braggart” who is not linked by any physical evidence to the scene. In a special session held outside the jury’s presence Monday afternoon, the defense will try to convince Judge Walter Morris Jr. that testimony allegedly implivating Durphey should be admitted as evidence. Zimmerman is attempting to limit any such evidence. What’s the Motive? Another area of interest in the case is motive. The defense has implied that Durphey would have been motivated by revenge to kill Little, who apparently broke up his relationship with another woman. During voir dire, Zimmerman noted to prospective jurors that the state was not required to prove a motive in the case, and she and Porter have barely explored that front thus far. But Black says the prosecution should probably try. “Legally, you don’t have to prove motive, but from a practical matter, if you were sitting on a jury, you would probably ask ‘why would he kill her?’ The fact that it is his knife doesn’t prove that he used it,” he said. In another twist, Zimmerman and Porter also may rely on a notorious sex offender to seal their case against Corliss Thomas Pellerin, currently serving a 18-to-20 year prison sentence for sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl, befriended Corliss while the latter was incarcerated following his arrest. Accordion to opening statements, Pellerin either conned Corliss into giving him a signed confession to Little’s murder or helped him devise a scheme making Durphey into a “patsy” for Little’s murder. Michael Mello, a professor at Vermont Law School, says the defence appears in “pretty good shape” thus far and said the prosecution runs an “enormous risk” if it calls Pellerin to the witness stand. “It seems to me that the prosecution has more to less and less to gain in calling Pellerin than the defense has to gain and lose by calling Corliss,” said Mello. Taking the Stand And in the end, unless the state’s case unexpectedly collapses, the most critical testimony will probably come from Corliss himself, Mello said. Although defendants are not required to take the witness stand, Donahue has all but promised the jury that his client will testify. “If (Corliss) does take the witness stand, i think it will ultimately boil down to whether the jury believes him or not,” said Mello. “He was there, it was his knife. If he takes the witness stand, it will presumably be for the purpose of explaining to the jury what happened.” “My guess is they wouldn’t call him unless they thought he would be a pretty credible witness,” Mello said. “Ultimately, it’s going to be up to the jury to decide based on his demeanor and his credibility and believability on the witness stand. To the extent that the prosecution can show that he lied in the past, that doesn’t help him.” [end page] Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Will He Testify? Subject The topic of the resource Murder Trial Description An account of the resource A newspaper article dated to October 23rd 1995 where the author discuses a murder trail under way with Adan Corliss being charged with the murder of Jennifer Little. The main bulk of the article discuses the approach of the prosecution and the defense on how they are going attack and defend Corliss receptivity Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Gregg, John Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1995-10-23 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Language A language of the resource English Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Windsor, VT https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/b9fc78f92a58be3c2ae7a345438c4c2a.jpg 226ce3452cdaa3faabd35a8919d9660a https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/37e86978698d98446ad7f4abc759424c.jpg 8b481af85e64870e725ca63d8119b9a0 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Letter Text Any textual data included in the document JAMES M. RUSS* TAD A. YATES *CERTIFIED CRIMINAL TRIAL AND CRIMINAL APPELLATE LAWYER BY THE FLORIDA BAR BOARD OF CERTIFICATION *CERTIFIED CRIMINAL TRIAL ADVOCATE BY THE NATIONAL BOARD OF TRIAL ADVOCACY LAW OFFICES OF JAMES M. RUSS PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION TINKER BUILDING 18 WEST PINE STREET ORLANDO, FLORIDA ZIP CODE 32801-2697 (407) 849 - 6050 FAX (407) 849 - 6059 LEGAL ASSISTANTS LORI A. LAKEMAN M. CHERIE HECKFORD January 19, 1996 PERSONAL AND CONFIDENTIAL Michael Mello, Esquire Vermont Law School Chelsea Street South Royalton, Vermont Re: State of Florida v. Spaziano Case No. 75-430-CFA, Circuit Court, Eighteenth Judicial Circuit, Seminole County, Florida Dear Professor Mello: Enclosed is Mr. Spaziano’s January 18, 1996 memorandum to Circuit Judge Eaton, which essentially summarizes his evidentiary earring which was held between January 8 and January 15, 1996, in the Circuit Court, Eighteenth Judicial Circuit, Seminole County, Florida. But for your courage and fortitude, which were evidenced in your 1995 actions on behalf of Mr. Spaziano, there is no question but that he would be dead today. I write to thank you for the courageous efforts you made on his behalf, in the face of criticism by both the Florida Supreme Court and the legal profession. I also write to thank you for the excellent materials which you created during the Summer of 1995 which were filed in the Florida Supreme court, and which you shared with us. These materials were of immeasurable help to all of us in coming to an early understanding of this case under then-existing severe time pressure. As you can see from the enclosed legal memorandum, at the evidentiary hearing the points and the witnesses you previously developed were presented to Judge Eaton in support of the motion for new trial. Also enclosed is a copy of the State’s Memorandum of Law, which arrived at my office as i was dictating this letter. Michael Mello, Esquire January 19, 1996 Page 2 Judge Eaton will probably rule in this case shortly after you receive this letter and legal memorandum. Irrespective of Judge Eaton’s decision, I want to record in this letter my professional admiration for you and my appreciation for everything you have done. Very truly yours, James M Russ (signature) James M. Russ JMR:ch Enclosures Mr. Spaziano’s Memorandum of Law on Evidence of Newly Discovered Evidence and Recantation State’s Memorandum of Law Cc: Steven Hanlon, Esquire Holland & Knight 315 South Calhoun Street Tallahassee, Florida 32301 w/o enclosures Gregg Thomas, Esquire Holland & Knight 400 North Ashley Drive, Suit 2300 Post Office Box 1288 Tampa, Florida 33602 w/o enclosures Chesterfield H. Smith, Esquire Holland & Knight Post Office Box 015441 Miami, Florida 33101-5441 w/o enclosures Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Van Doren, Jamie Student Editor of the Digital Item Dickinson, Terra Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Re: State of Florida v. Spaziano Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1996-01-19 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 2 JPGs 300 DPI Language A language of the resource English Description An account of the resource James M. Russ, an Orlando, Florida lawyer sends Mello his “professional admiration” for his work on the Spaziano case, as well as a memorandum by Spaziano to Judge Eaton and the State of Florida’s Memorandum of Law. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Florida Maine Subject The topic of the resource Spaziano, Joe Trials Litigation Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Russ, James M. James M Russ State of Florida v Spaziano https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/de98b1403237654e15c7a6f443f80ee0.jpg be7b0d99e5b4c6fbe6fb4b2cc55cece7 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/8affbde699646ecdade956cbd0367746.jpg 495525e8fca2740755ba49729ddd63c3 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [title] A phony trial and a crucial issue: Justice <br /><br />[author] By Tony Proscio <br /><br />If you didn't know the players, you might have mistaken this for a romantic morality play: The tale of the Penitent Liar racing to the gallows to rescue the wrongly Convicted Man, just as the Crusading Lawyer lunges to stay the executioner's upraised hand. <br /><br />Great stuff. Standing room only. Free hankies with every performance. <br /><br />Trouble is, history is a lousy screenwriter. The case of the State of Florida vs. Joseph Spaziano-- the 20-year-old murder trial under examination in a Seminole County courtroom-- has all the makings of a first-rate tearjerker. <br /><br />The man about to be executed could well be innocent. The testimony that put him on death row is almost certainly false. And his "trial" was a mockery of the Constitution. It's an alarming story of American justice. But as a box-office blockbuster, it's got one giant problem: <br />The cast stinks.<br /><br />The Wrongly Condemned Man. "Crazy Joe" Spaziano, is no Tom Hanks. He's a tough, scary-looking biker with a monster rap sheet and enough enemies (including several members of his own family) to overflow a medium-sized courtroom.<br /><br />The False-but-Penitent Witness isn't Brad Pitt, all doe-eyed remorse and misguided innocence. He's Tony DiLisio, a fast-talking former acidhead who seems to live permanently on the edge of hysteria. Twenty years ago, as a drugged-out teenager, he succumbed to police entreaties and two sessions of shamelessly suggestive hypnosis to accuse Spaziano, a former buddy, of torture and murder. A born-again Christian, he now admits that he was lying when his hand first rested on the Bible. Still, after days of anguished deliberation, a jury reluctantly believed his fabrication, and Spaziano headed for the electric chair. <br /><br />And the original Crusading Lawyer is no Jimmy Stewart. He's an angry ideologue who writes legal briefs that read like temper tantrums, a guy who insists on referring to his adversaries (including federal appellate judges) by the unprintable names of private body parts. <br /><br />These are not people you're likely to fall in love with. No one is going to become engrossed in this story for its glamour. In fact, many people seem to have missed the point of it entirely, apparently because it consists largely of small-town grotesques with often dark, imponderable motives. <br /><br />All of this may explain how surprised I was when Jim Leusner, a reporter for The Orlando Sentinel, approached me last week outside Judge O.H. Eaton Jr.'s courtroom in Seminole County, during a break in the Spaziano hearing. to ask me this remarkable question: <br /><br />"Has The Herald lost its objectivity on this story?" <br /><br />Huh? Lost its objectivity? For what? Because its reporters and editors were somehow enthralled by the allure of these magnetic personalities? Entranced by their Gandhi-like serenity? Blinded by their charm? <br /><br />What element of this story, I wanted to ask him, would have caused The Herald suddenly to shed its principles? No matter how little one might think of this newspaper--and I happen to think quite highly of it-- what possible motive could there be for casting ethics aside in this of all cases? <br /><br />What he meant, I suppose, is that Lori Rozsa, The Herald's lead reporter on this story, was the first journalist to pierce through to DiLisio's conscience and hear him admit his 20-year-old lie. On June 9, Rozsa went to DiLisio's Pensacola home seeking his view of his flimsy 1975 testimony. After getting the door slammed in her face, she used the salesman's classic stratagem she thrust her foot past the doorjamb. DiLisio soon gave in and finally told her what he previously had told only his pastor. He lied and had sent a man to probable death. <br /><br />That was dramatic (and top-notch) reporting. It demonstrated Rozsa's skill and determination. It yielded a Page One story. What it did not do is alter The Herald's interest in the case of Florida vs Spaziano. <br /><br />Well before Rozsa ever went to Pensacola--in fact, before her editor was even convinced that it was worth the trip--The Herald already had prepared an editorial saying that Spaziano's trial was a hopelessly <br /><br />[image-Proscio] [image caption- Tony Proscio was the Herald's associate editor from 1992-95. Now New York City's deputy commissioner of homeless services he wrote this article for the Herald] [end of Page one] <br /><br />[beginning of Page two] deficient basis for executing him. <br /><br />Why? Because we had read the transcripts of the trial and of DiLisio's abracadabra "hypnosis." Because we looked for corroboration, physical evidence, convincing testimony, and found absolutely none. Before the witness had recanted anything, before any Herald reporter had met him or even contemplated meeting him, keen observers of the legal system inside and outside the paper already had smelled the constitutional stench of a shamefully bad trial.<br /><br />The Florida Supreme Court, intrigued by DiLisio's recantation and Rozsa's reporting, eventually ordered the current hearing. As a result, Judge Eaton is expected to decide today or sometime very soon whether he believes what DiLisio says today, or what he said 20 years ago. <br /><br />Yet in all this high legal drama, the heart and soul of this horrendous matter seems to have been lost. Namely: The case against Spaziano smelled to high heaven before The Herald ran the first story on it. It was a phony prosecution, based on a single witness with a disastrous drug habit, several clear motives to lie, a story that took weeks (and two sessions of hypnotic suggestion) to concoct and a number of assertions that contradicted the known evidence. <br /><br />Were there two bodies or one? Were they side-by-side or piled one atop the other? Were they both young, or was one of them noticeably elderly? Were they covered or in plain view? Were they in a dump or an orange grove? Did Spaziano boast of murdering them or merely hint of committing other, similar murders? All of that depends on when the teenage DiLisio was talking, and to whom. Yet the whole prosecution of Joe Spaziano rested on this one troubled kid's twisted, incredible tale. <br /><br />Don't believe me. Believe the state's prosecutor at trial: "If you don't believe Tony DiLisio," he told the jury then, "the only possible verdict was not guilty." Eventually jurors reached the wrong conclusion. But don't blame them: No one ever told them about the hypnosis or the contradictions. <br /><br />Whether to believe Tony DiLisio is a crucial issue, but it's not the fundamental issue. The fundamental issue has nothing to do with DiLisio, or with Lori Rozsa, or with The Herald. It has to do with the electric chair, with justice and with this simple question: <br /><br />Does Florida dare -- does any decent society dare-- to electrocute a human being based on a trial like the one they gave Joe Spaziano 20 years ago? And if so, why bother with trials at all? <br /><br />That's what I should have said to Sentinel reporter Jim Leusner. Sometimes, though, the truest things don't come to your mind right away. Sometimes, you have to think things through awhile to get them right. Sometimes, the truth can take 20 years to tell. <br /><br />[image-Rozsa] [image caption- Rozsa] <br /><br />[end of Page two] Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Nameroff, Griffin Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource A phony trial and a crucial issue: Justice Subject The topic of the resource False testimony Witnesses Description An account of the resource On January 21, 1996, the Miami Herald reported that Tony DiLisio admitted to lying in his testimony in the Spaziano trial twenty years prior. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Proscio, Tony Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Proscio, Tony. "A phony trial and a crucial issue: Justice." Miami Herald, January 21, 1996, C1. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1996-01-21 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Language A language of the resource English Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 2 JPGs 300DPI Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Miami, FL https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/9783325eace82d08c066646463efc24d.jpg ab805ab5346656da0f8538a560548c39 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/9450cd903fa816ea43fc268a3a5aa954.jpg 604a567325862ad567f523abd5714dd3 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [title] Judge Orders Retrial of Condemned Man [author] By BRYAN K. MARQUARD: Valley News Staff Writer <br /><br />[subtext] The decision could mean the Joseph Spaziano will leave Death Row alive, rather than end his more than 20-year stint with a walk to Florida’s electric chair. <br /><br />[image—Joe Spaziano] [image caption] Joe Spaziano listens as his attorneys argue for a new trial in his 1976 murder case during the first day of a hearing in Sanford, Fla., on Jan. 8. This week, a judge ordered a new trial for the former Outlaws gang member after ruling a key witness lied to the 1976 trial jury.<br /><br />A Florida judge has issued a stern opinion ordering a new murder trial for a death row inmate whose longtime attorney and friend teachers at Vermont Law School. <br /><br />The decision could mean that Joseph Spaziano will leave Death Row alive, rather than end his more than 20-year stint with a walk to Old Sparky—the nickname for Florida’s electric chair. <br /><br />Spaziano’s case was Michael Mello’s first assignment when he joined the Florida Public Defender’s office in the early 1980s. He continued to work on his client’s Death Row appeals after joining the law school faculty—even when a showdown with the Florida Supreme Court last fall resulted in the justices removing his from the case. <br /><br />“I feel great,” Mello said yesterday in an assessment that was echoed by one of the three lawyers who argues the condemned man’s case during an evidentiary hearing in Sanford, Fla., earlier this month. <br /><br />“It’s great news,” said Elyse Runzow, one of 11 students in Mello’s capital punishment seminar at Vermont Law School last fall that, as a class project, worked on two petitions that Mello filed with the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court unanimously reject those petitions earlier this month. <br /><br />The Florida circuit court judge issued the ruling Monday, a day before the 20th anniversary of the murder conviction that sent Spaziano to Death Row, where he has survived five death warrants signed during the administrations of three Florida governors. <br /><br />The ruling that vacated the murder conviction came after a hearing that was prompted in part by a Miami Herald interview last June with Anthony DiLisio, the key witness in the case. DiLisio told the Herald—and testified in the hearing this month—that he lied more than 20 years ago when he said Spaziano had taken him to a dump in a rural area to show him the mutilated bodies of two women he had murdered. In 1976, DiLisio was a troubled teenager in a juvenile facility, and he recalled the encounter only after two sessions of hypnosis. <br /><br />“In the United States of America every person, no matter how unsavory, is entitled to due process of law and a fair trial. The defendant received neither,” Judge O.H. Eaton Jr. wrote in an eight-page ruling. “The validity of the verdict in this case rests upon the testimony of an admitted perjurer who had every reason to fabricate a story which he hoped would be believed.” <br /><br />Spaziano, who is on Death Row at the Union Correctional Institution in Union County, Fla., told the Herald Monday, “I’ve been trying to tell people all this time that the kid lied. I’m so happy people finally believe me.” Spaziano, who was known in the 1970s by his nickname, Crazy Joe, was a member of the Outlaws motorcycle gang when he was convicted of murdering Laura Harberts, a 18-year-old hospital clerk. <br /><br />The judge also wrote that DiLisio’s recantation “would probably produce a different result on retrial.” <br /><br />Tom Hastings, an assistant state attorney [end of page one]<br /><br />[beginning of page two] who was the lead prosecutor during the hearing, did not return calls seeking a comment. But he told the Herald Monday that it’s likely the state will appeal the decision. <br /><br />Gregg Thomas, one of the three lawyers representing Spaziano in the hearing this month, said in an interview yesterday that he believes the judge’s decision “is almost totally unassailable. . . . I think it would make an appeal very difficult.” <br /><br />He also predicted that the state would not attempt to retry Spaziano on the murder charge.<br /><br />Regardless of what the state decides to do, Spaziano will remain in jail for now. A few months before being convicted of murder in 1976, he was sentenced to life in prison for the brutal rape and assault of a 16-year-old girl. Spaziano has said he did not commit that crime either, and Mello is pushing for another court battle in an attempt to win freedom for his client, who was notified of the stay of execution on his fifth death warrant last September on his 50th birthday. <br /><br />But those battles are for another time. Yesterday, those involved with Spaziano’s defense were in a congratulatory mood. Two of the three attorneys who represented him in the hearing have praised the actions of Mello, who, in a dangerous game of brinkmanship, defied a Florida Supreme Court order to attend a hearing last fall. The move earned him the enmity of the court, but bought Spaziano the few extra months necessary for a legal team to get things in order for this month’s hearing. <br /><br />“But for your courage and fortitude, which were evidenced in your 1995 actions on behalf of Mr. Spaziano, there is no question that he would be dead today,” James Russ, one of Spaziano’s attorneys, wrote in a letter to Mello dated last Friday. “I write to thank you for the courageous efforts you made on his behalf, in the face of criticism by both the Florida Supreme Court and the legal profession.” <br /><br />“Michael Mello is responsible for Joe Spaziano being alive,” Thomas said in the telephone interview yesterday. “I’ve never been prouder of a lawyer in my life.”<br /><br />“If you’re measuring our contributions next to Michael’s contributions, ours pales in comparison,” he said.<br /><br />Thomas said several lawyers from his firm—Holland and Knight, the largest firm in Florida—worked through what would have been their Christmas vacation to prepare for Spaziano’s hearing. “Our Christmas present came yesterday,” he said with a chuckle. <br /><br />Among those who were elated over the ruling was Rose Spaziano, the defendant’s mother, who said she expected the judge would order a retrial. “I was hoping for a complete dismissal, but a retrial’s OK,” she said. “I’m hoping that things will go Joe’s way for a change.” She had not heard from her son yesterday, but said she was expecting a call, and added that he looked “real good” during the hearing. “He smiled at me,” she said. “He’s in good spirits.” <br /><br />Marynoel Spaziano was not quite 5 years old when her father was sent to Death Row. Yesterday, while shushing one of her father’s three grandchildren, she said she was happy about the judge’s ruling. Joseph Spaziano has seen two of his grandchildren once, she said. He was kept in handcuffs during the in-person meeting, which was allowed as he neared the execution date for one of his five death warrants. <br /><br />Also cheered by the news was longtime death penalty opponent Mike Farrell, the actors whose credits include he TV show M*A*S*H. He was active in a petition drive calling for a retrial for Spaziano. He said yesterday that Spaziano’s case “added elements” to the anti-death penalty crusade that would “make it abundantly clear to people that it doesn’t work, if you pay attention to the specifics.” <br /><br />He said he plans to spread the word about the case and “use this experience to help inform people about the ugly realities” of the death penalty. “I have profited enormously from this experience, just from the perspective of a human being,” he said of his work in cases such as Spaziano’s. “When we succeed in ending this, we will be a better nation for it.” <br /><br />Mello said the biggest hero in the Spaziano case may be the judge who issued the ruling, because the seat on the bench is an elected position. <br /><br />“From a political standpoint, from a personal standpoint, the only fair characterization of this decision . . . is extraordinarily courageous,” he said. “His local newspaper (the Orlando Sentinel) has been frothing at the mouth over this. All of the local TV stations have frothing over this.” <br /><br />The decision was also courageous “in terms of judicial politics,” Mello said, given that Spaziano’s attempts to secure a retrial or dismissal have failed when his case argued before the Florida Supreme Court, U.S. District Court, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and the U. S. Supreme Court. “This took guts,” Mello said. “You never know where the heroes are going to come from.” [end of page two] Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Judge Orders Retrial of Condemned Man Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource MARQUARD, BRYAN K Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Newspaper Language A language of the resource English Description An account of the resource Could Joseph Spaziano leave Death Row alive or will he end his twenty year stint with a walk to Florida's electric chair? Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Valley News Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1996-01-24 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/b59d847eca13727f615efbcff67a6258.jpg db1455a3b1a99bb6def418c74bc0ac03 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document For a few days last month, it looked as if Joe Spaziano had finally reached the high road to freedom. Potholes have developed. Let me update the story. On Aug. 21, 1973, police in Seminole County were led to a county dump. There they found the mutilated bodies of Laura Lynn Hartberts and another young woman. Two years passed. No leads. No suspects. No evidence. Then the authorities learned of a 16-year-old who wanted to talk. The kid had run away from a drug treatment center in a stolen car, and maybe he would strike a deal. This was Tony DiLisio. He had a bizarre story to tell. Indeed, he had several bizarre stories to tell, each of them contradicting details of the one before. The gist of it was that "Crazy Joe" Spaziano had taken him to the dump, pointed out the bodies, and claimed responsibility for the apparent murders. Young Tony's story was not all that convincing, but the cops were patient. They brought in a hypnotist. Tony obediently "remembered" all sorts of things. It was shaky evidence, but it was all the state had. Thus the Harberts' murder case went to trial in January 1976 before Judge Robert McGregor. At a pretrial hearing, the trial prosecutor made no bones about his case. "If we can't get in the testimony of Tony DiLisio, we'd absolutely have no case here whatsoever." Counsel repeated that admission in closing argument to the jury: "If you don't believe DiLIsio, then find the defendant not guilty in five minutes." As it later transpired, at least one juror had grave doubts about DiLisio, but the jury's verdict was guilty - with a recommendation for life imprisonment. Judge McGregor overruled the jury and sentenced Spaziano to death. Years passed. Appeals went up and down. Five times the governor set a date for execution. A lawyer who became obsessed with the case, Michael Mello, refused to give up. Six months ago the break came. DiLisio confessed that his testimony was a lie. He had fingered Spaziano to please his domineering father, who had reason to hate Crazy Joe. Florida's Supreme Court remanded the case for further proceedings on the newly discovered evidence. Now the good news: On Jan. 23, Judge O. H. Eaton Jr. vacated the verdict of guilty, vacated the death sentence, and ordered a new trial to begin in March. The bad news is that the state is appealing to Judge Eaton's order to the Florida Supreme Court. Before all appeals are exhausted, months or years could pass. Judge Eaton's opinion amounts to a complete vindication of Mello's selfless labor, Said the judge: "The crucial testimony at the trial of this case in 1976 came from the mouth of Anthony DiLisio. It was he who provided the only evidence of the cause of death of the decedent and it was he who supplied the jury with the evidence connecting this tragic event to the defendant. Without his testimony, there simply is no corroborating evidence in the trial record that is sufficient to sustain the verdict. . . ." Judge Eaton sketched a sordid picture. Tony's father, Ralph DiLiso, abused his six children. Tony grew up on the wild side. He got heavily into drugs. Meanwhile his father, who owned a boat dealership, was having an affair with one of his employees known as "Keppy." Judge Eaton's opinion continued: "Keppy seduced Tony DiLisio when he was 15 and with whom he had frequent sexual intercourse for about two and one-half years. His father and Keppy ultimately married. DiLisio had sex with her for the last time on their wedding day. . . . "The defendant (Spaziano) worked at the marina. . . . Not surprisingly, Keppy began to have a sexual relationship with the defendant. Ralph DiLisio found out and became angry. At some point Keppy accused the defendant of raping her. It was about that time that Ralph DiLisio asked his son if the defendant had told him he mutilated women. DiLisio testified that the defendant never said anything like that to him. But the idea was planted in his mind." A chain of events led to the two sessions of hypnosis. Judge Eaton said the hypnotist "does not give the listener confidence in his abilities." One defense expert graded the hypnotist a "double F"; the other rated his skill at zero. "In the United States," Judge Eaton concluded, "every person, no matter how unsavory, is entitled to due process of law and a fair trial. The defendant received neither. The validity of the verdict in this case rests upon the testimony of an admitted perjurer who had every reason to fabricate a story which he hoped he would be believed. The courts of this country should not tolerate the deprivation of life or liberty under such circumstances. . . . The judgment and sentence cannot stand." Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Snellings, Alyssa Student Editor of the Digital Item Dickinson, Terra Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource One more detour on Spaziano's long road to freedom Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Language A language of the resource English Subject The topic of the resource Spaziano, Joe Mello, Michael Florida. Supreme Court Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Kilpatrick, James J. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Kilpatrick James J. "One more detour on Spaziano's long road to freedom." Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 JPG 300 DPI Description An account of the resource Joe Spaziano was suspected and accused of the murder of two young women in 1973 as a result of the statement from Anthony DiLisio. https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/33ee5cd1dcec9d0fd9dfe8050747442a.jpg eee50c05e1711378e9303802b86017d2 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The two Crazy Joes Subject The topic of the resource Spaziano, Joe Description An account of the resource Joe "Crazy Joe" Spaziano became a point of interest for two magazines: The H Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Barstow, David Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Barstow, David. "The two Crazy Joes." St. Petersburg Times, February, 1996. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1996-02-25 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 5 JPGS Language A language of the resource English Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant St. Petersburg, FL Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Text Item Type Metadata https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/1227e9b787a87555970c8164277ab644.jpg a07efcdc14236e16f7a4adf302f39299 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/294137f3e8f0cdc3f6bc328be0c3bb87.jpg 8bffce3d3f823e98e2b269eff7945681 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/936ffa4a531b2c7ced6fad400516e0ba.jpg 36b4083ccae5a6940abf2528c3945be7 https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/4a4e277632e9b3c12f99853da7851ec9.jpg 56bcecb7b7556a04e5850e5fc6c3a21e Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [Page One] [Title] The two Crazy Joes [Photographs of Joseph Spaziano during his first trial and one of his appeals to court] [Caption] Two photographs, one man. As different as Joseph “Crazy Joe” Spaziano looks in these pictures is about as different as the coverage of his case in the Miami Herald and the Orlando Sentinel. [Page Two] [Column One] With the help of God and the Miami herald, we’ll cross the finish line together. And alive. And free. Attorney Michael Mello, in a letter to his client, death row inmate Joe Spaziano The Sentinel will write whatever it wants, and if another (death) warrant comes, your blood will be on their hands. Mello, in another letter to Spaziano Last summer, two newspapers—the Miami Herald and the Orlando Sentinel—set out to do the same thing. Each dedicated itself to finding The Truth in the case of Joseph “Crazy Joe” Spaziano, the Outlaw biker condemned to death 20 years ago for the murder of a young Orlando medical clerk. Each produced a stream of news stories based on standard reporting techniques: digging up records, tracking down witnesses, pumping sources, talking to key participants. But a strange thing happened on the trail to truth. In eight months of compelling coverage, as execution dates came and went, the two newspapers arrived at separate truths about Crazy Joe’s case, truths as incompatible as life and death. The Herald found in Spaziano a pathetic victim of injustice. The Sentinel found a “dead-eyed” rapist-killer. The Herald found shabby evidence, shaky witnesses and a lead detective who drove around the countryside in a squad car with a psychic holding a skull in her lap. The Sentinel described incriminating evidence, unshakable witnesses and a former Outlaw enforcer called Gatemouth who said Spaziano bragged that sex was best after a killing. The Herald found a guild-ridden prosecution witness who had motives to lie 20 years ago but now [End of First Column] [Beginning of Second Column] wanted to set the record straight? The Sentinel described the same witness as a troubled flake with reasons to spring forth with a bogus recantation. This extraordinary divergence was neatly summarized in headlines on editorials last month, when a judge ordered a new trial for Spaziano. The Herald: “Justice Awakens.” The Sentinel:”Justice Clearly Cheated.” How could two newspapers—both pro-death penalty and each committed to the truth—see the same case so differently? The coverage was shaped by forces unseen by readers. These newspapers pursued different questions and were driven by different ideas about the proper role of journalism. Their coverage was molded by ego and instinct. Stories were affected by reactions to what the other newspaper was writing, and by the manipulations of a few key sources. Coverage was even affected by one reporter’s premature delivery of a baby and another reporter’s childhood memories. The stakes were high: Either an innocent man was about to be executed, or a murderer was going to beat the system. “I think they were both zealously going after the truth, or what they perceived to be the truth,” says Ron Sachs, a former reporter who until recently was Gov. Lawton Chiles’ spokesman. ‘And I have no doubt in my mind that they were guided and motivated by pure altruism. That doesn’t mean they got closer to the truth. Both papers wrote accurate stories—factual stories. “But this was a classic example of how you can vigorously pursue a particular viewpoint and generate the facts to support your viewpoint. “The trouble is, at least one of these great newspapers is probably wrong.” Please see CRAZY JOE 8a [Heading] Crazy Joe from IA [Page Three] [First Column] Early last May, Michael Mello nervously dialed the number of Gene Miller, an editor at the Miami Herald. They knew each other by reputation alone. Mello teaches law in Vermont. He also represented death row inmates, including Spaziano. Mello usually avoided the media and confined his advocacy to the strict procedural rules that govern death penalty appeals. But this case was different. Of the 70 men he had represented on death row, Spaziano was the first Mello thought truly innocent. With appeals exhausted and the hour of execution drawing near, Mello decided to approach the Media. It was the first such phone call he says he had ever made. Gene Miller is a legend in journalism circles. He has built a career crusading against miscarriages of justice. His first Pulitzer Prize, in 1967, was for stories that cleared two convicts of murder they did not commit. His second Pulitzer, in 1976, came for reporting that led to the release and pardon of Freddie Pitts and Wilbert Lee, sentenced to death for murdering two Panhandle gas station attendants. Plenty of people want Miller to crusade for them, but he thinks most “innocent-man” claims are baseless. When Mello called and asked him to review Spaziano’s case, Miller agreed—expecting that he would take a quick look and toss it aside. But his interest surged when he saw Joe McCawley’s name in Mello’s records. McCawley was the discredited hypnotist who some say implanted false memories in a key witness in the Pitts and Lee case. Here he was again in the Spaziano case, and his role was even more prominent. Police had no eyewitnesses or physical evidence tying Spaziano to the murder of 8-year-old Laura Lynn Harberts. Her body left to rot in a dump, was too decomposed to even determine cause of death. The sole evidence linking Spaziano to the murder came from a troubled 17-year-old who, under McCawley’s hypnosis, said Spaziano had taken him to a dump to show off the body. The teenager, an Outlaw wannabe, also said Spaziano bragged of mutilating Herberts’ genitals with a knife while she was alive—testimony that sealed a death sentence for Spaziano. Miller asked Miami polygraph examiner Warren Holmes to read Spaziano’s trial transcripts. Holmes had worked with Miller in most of his big miscarriage-of-justice stories. Miller considers Homes “a man with a ruthlessly logical mind” and “a superb homicide interrogator.” Holmes told Miller it was obvious that the 17-year-old lied in his testimony. He didn’t even get basic details of the crime scene right. [End of First Column] [Beginning of Second Column] Without conducting a single interview, Miller decided Spaziano was probably innocent. He was appalled that testimony induced by hypnosis—a practice since barred from trials as unreliable—would be enough to send a man to the chair. Yes, the highest courts in the land had blessed the fairness of Spaziano’s trial, including the hypnosis. To Miller, that still didn’t make it right. In Miller’s aggressive brand of journalism, the reporter’s mission is to find the truth and then persuade others to do something about it. When the clock is ticking on a man’s life, that can mean stepping outside the ordinary boundaries of Joe Friday “just the facts, ma’am” journalism. It can mean taking a side and advocating a position. It can mean lobbying a governor in person (as he did for Pitts and Lee)m or lining up legal help for the condemned (as he did for Pitts and Lee and others). To those who say journalists should remain neutral and objective, he responds simply: “ A man’s life is at stake. I think I’m doing the right thing.” Miller had Mello write an impassioned opinion piece raising doubts about the Spaziano case. Miller edited the piece and arranged its simultaneous publication in Sunday editions of the Herald, the Sentinel and the St. Petersburg Times. Miller also urged other editors at the Herald to dispatch a reporter to investigate Spaziano’s case. They decided to focus on a question that already had all but settled in their own minds: Did Spaziano get a fair trial? . . . Reporter Lori Rozsa has never covered an execution. Working out of Herald’s Palm Beach bureau, she writes mainly about the environment. When Gov. Chiles scheduled Spaziano’s execution for June 27, 1995, Rozsa’s editors asked if she had any qualms about witnessing an execution. She didn’t. She believes the Ted Bundys of the world probably deserve to die. Like Miller, Rozsa felt strong misgivings as she read through the trial records. The key to the case was the 17-year-old witness, Tony DiLisio. The prosecutor admitted he didn’t have a case without him. Rozsa, 35, flew to Pensacola to interview DiLisio. Nobody was home the first two times she visited. The third time he shut the door on her foot and threatened to call 911. The fourth time he said a few words then cut her short. Rozsa didn’t give up. On her fifth try, DiLisio began to talk. At first, he said he couldn’t remember a thing about the case. The longer he talked, the closer he edged toward saying his trial testimony had been a lie. He called hypnosis “witchcraft.” He said he was just a scared, confused kid. He said Spaziano never took him to the dump to see a body. [End of Second Column] [Beginning of Third Column] He said the execution should be halted. Rozsa’s gut told her DiLisio was being truthful. To her, it was significant that he had been so reluctant to talk. After the interview, Rozsa called Mello from her hotel. “She couldn’t believe it and I couldn’t believe it,” Mello recalls.” She was on cloud five or six.” Until then, Rozsa had remained skeptic about Spaziano’s claim of innocence. DiLisio’s recantation convinced her Spaziano was an innocent victim of an outrageous miscarriage of justice. “That sealed it for me,” she says. . . . Rozsa’s story describing DiLisio’s recantation ran on page one of the Herald on June 11. Remember, the murder occurred not in Miami, but near Orlando. As sometimes happens when newspapers get scooped in their own back yard, the Orlando Sentinel was slow to react to the story. The governor was not. He immediately asked the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to investigate. Days later, the Sentinel ran a short Associated Press story about the FDLE investigation. The story was buried inside the paper. When Chiles stayed Spaziano’s execution, the Sentinel finally had its own reporter write a story. In it, he included references to the Herald’s work. His editors at the Sentinel wanted to cut out any references to other newspapers. “They didn’t want to admit that the story got by us,” recalls the reporter, Michael Griffin, the Sentinel’s Tallahassee bureau chief. Griffin was upset with his newspaper. He had asked permission to pursue the Spaziano case after the Sentinel published Mello’s opinion article. “I read that and thought,’Holy Christ, this guy could be innocent,’” he says. His editors put him off, and the Spaziano story languished in another bureau of the newspaper. When Griffin read Rozsa’s page one story about DiLisio’s recantation, he thought,” This should have been our story. This is our story.” Griffin’s editors belatedly agreed and quickly threw a platoon of eight reporters at the story. But their mission was shaped by journalism principles far different from the ones guiding the Herald. “You don’t have an opinion in this case,” Sentinel editor John Haile told his news staff. Haile considered it “terribly presumptuous” for any reporter to judge the fairness of a 20-year-old trial and decades of subsequent appeals. “I’m not sure where we are vested with this authority to say,’We know better than you,’” Haile says. He didn’t want his reporters crusading. Spaziano deserved justice, but so did the [End of Page Three] [Beginning of Page Four] [First Column] Victim, Laura Harberts. “We didn’t set out to try and free anybody; we didn’t set out to try and convict anybody,” Haile says. “A reporter’s job is to go out and find the truth, whatever that may be. The Herald began with the question: Did Spaziano receive a fair trial? The Sentinel’s editors decided to focus narrowly on a different question: Is Tony DiLisio telling the truth now? Like Lori Rozsa before him, Michael Griffin went to Pensacola to interview DiLisio. But where Rozsa left DiLisio’s home certain his recantation was genuine, Griffin left his interview equally certain that DiLisio was lying. “I caught the guy in the first 15 minutes in a half-dozen lies,” Griffin recalls. DiLisio said he had been “Christian and clean” for more than a decade. Griffin knew DiLisio had been arrested twice for DUI, and twice more for hitting a former girlfriend. Rozsa’s and Griffin’s opposite impressions of DiLisio resulted in distinctively different coverage. Believing DiLisio’s recantation was bogus, Griffin and other Sentinel reporters wrote stories tearing into his credibility now. They explored his recent brushes with the law. They quoted friends and relatives who said DiLisio is a compulsive liar—but that he was telling the truth 20 years ago. Sentinel reporters emphasized DiLisio’s motives to lie now—possible fear of the Outlaws, maybe to cash in with tabloid TV. They dissected inconsistencies in his current story. They made not mention of the hypnosis checkered past. Certain DiLisio’s recantation was real, Rozsa and other Herald reporters wrote stories ripping into DiLisio’s credibility 20 years ago. They described him as a desperate, drugged-out teenager. They quoted friends and relatives who said DiLisio was a compulsive liar—but that he is telling the truth now. Herald reporters emphasized DiLisio’s motives to lie then—because Spaziano had supposedly raped DiLisio’s stepmother, because he wanted to please the police, because his father told him to. They dissected inconsistencies in his testimony from 20 years ago. They barely mentioned DiLisio’s recent troubles with the law. Rozsa would see Sentinel stories and wonder,” Are they reading the same stuff as me?” Griffin was no less dumbfounded by the Herald. “For the life of me I cannot understand how you can look at the same amount of material that we both looked at and come back with such widely different takes on this.” At times, Griffin felt he had to set the record straight. He thought the Herald painted too rosy a picture of Spaziano and his fellow Outlaws. Griffin, 34, grew up in Orlando, and he remembered the fearsome reputation of the local Outlaws in the 70s. There were tales of gang rapes and killings, and he recalled his parents keep- [End of Column One] [Beginning of Column Two] -ing him inside at night when women’s bodies began turning up in local dumps. After Spaziano was arrested for one of the “dump murders,” the newspapers were filled with Spaziano’s violent exploits. When Griffin wrote that Spaziano lived “a misfit’s life of spontaneous brutality and murder,” he says he was trying to counter the Herald’s depiction of Crazy Joe as a clownish charmer—”the most popular guy on death row.” “I was aiming that at his supporters, and I include the Miami Herald in that,” he says. On Aug. 24, 1995, Gov. Chiles reset Spaziano’s execution date. He said FDLE investigators turned up new evidence of Spaziano’s guilt, including witnesses who said DiLisio talked of seeing a body at the dump long before he talked to police and the hypnotist. The Sentinel had the story first. “It was a bad, bad day when Chiles signed that death warrant,” Rozsa recalls. She was upset at being scooped, of course. More deeply, she was upset that Spaziano seemed destined for the chair. Obviously I haven’t done my job,” she thought. If it came to it, she decided, she would not attend the execution. She could not bear to watch the electrocution of a man she believed to be innocent. . . . In politics, they say, perception can become reality. The same can hold true for journalism. In the Spaziano case, perceptions that the newspapers were biased only widened the split in the coverage. Spaziano’s attorney, Michael Mello, had assumed early on that the Sentinel would largely echo the Herald’s coverage, and he was thrilled when Griffin first called him about the case. Mello offered to open up his records to the newspaper. His strategy for saving Spaziano depended on generating sympathetic coverage that would put pressure on Chiles. When the Sentinel stories began to tail spin unfavorable to his client, Mello worried his strategy had backfired. The way he figured, the Sentinel was giving Chiles political cover to execute Spaziano. In response, Mello publicly labeled the Sentinel an “accomplice to murder.” He stopped taking Sentinel phone calls. He withdrew his offer to allow them full access to his files. He instructed Spaziano not to talk to the Sentinel. Tony DiLisio also clammed up on the Sentinel. The Herald—whom Mello referred to as his “investigative partner”—continued to get red-carpet treatment. Another key source was John Gordy, the FDLE agent in charge of the governor’s investigation into the Spaziano case. Early on, he spoke several times with Lori Rozsa. She impressed Gordy as a reporter who [End of Second Column] [Beginning of Second Column] Wanted to uncover what was “righteous and real.” But when Rozsa wrote a page one story about flaws and errors in Gordy’s investigation, Gordy felt betrayed. He and other law enforcement sources began to view Rozsa and the Herald as an extension of Spaziano’s defense team. “We ended our relationship,” he says. Gordy did not, however, end his relationship with the Sentinel. If anything, Gordy talked even more openly with Sentinel reporters. He fed them information he hoped would “set the record straight. One Sentinel story reported that DiLisio’s attorney declined comment, followed by this small dig: “He and DiLisio then walked down the street with a Miami Herald reporter, who first reported DiLisio’s recantation in June.” With key sources taking sides, perception became reality. “If you’re only hearing one side of the story, it’s kind of hard to be objective and balanced,” Griffin says. Editors and reporters at both papers say they strived to keep their stories balanced and their minds open. Sometimes fate interfered. Having written so much about Spaziano and DiLisio, Rozsa planned to write a profile of the victim, Laura Harbert. But Rozsa was pregnant, and her baby came several weeks early; the Harberts profile was scratched. To the discomfort of the reporters, both newspapers fueled perceptions of bias—and not just with their editorials (Herald—free him; Sentinel—fry him.) The Herald helped line up one of the state’s best law firms to represent Spaziano for free. And Gene Miller wrote a several page letter to Ron Sachs, the governor press secretary, explaining “why I think the state is very close to executing a man who in all probability is innocent.” In the letter, Miller offered to make Rozsa available to the governor, even providing her home number. (“I was wondering why he did that,” Rozsa says.) The Sentinel, on the other hand, ran this page one banner headline last month, on the first day of a crucial court hearing to decide whether Spaziano should get a new trial: “Former Outlaw: Spaziano Enjoyed Killing.” (Michael Griffin cringed when he saw that. “The headline,” he says,”was just way over the top.”) . . . In the Herald newsroom, some suspected the Sentinel of climbing into bed with the governor’s office to knock down [End of Fourth Page] [Beginning of Fifth Page] [Heading] At the Miami Herald [Photograph of Gene Miller] Gene Miller, a Miami Herald editor, had won two Pulitzer Prizes crusading against unfair convictions. [Photograph of Lori Rozsa] Herald reporter Lori Rozsa wasn’t sure if Spaziano was innocent until after the state’s star witness told her his trial testimony was a lie. [Heading] The witness [Photograph of Tony Dilisio] Tony Dilisio testified in 1976 that Spaziano showed him the victim’s body; 20 years later, he took it all back after Rozsa knocked on his door. [Heading] At the Orlando Sentinel [Photograph of John Haile] Sentinel editor John Haile didn’t want his reporters trying to judge whether Spaziano received a fair trial 20 years ago. [Photograph of Michael Griffin] Reporter Michael Griffin says he has never worked harder on a story. “I’m proud of the newspaper, proud of the way we did this story.” [Column One] their findings. What better what ease the sting of being scooped on your home turf? At the Sentinel, some suspected the Herald of climbing into bed with Spaziano’s attorneys. What better way to win a Pulitzer Prize than to get a guy off death row? People at the Herald took offense when a Sentinel reporter asked one of their writers,” Has the Herald lost its objectivity on the story?” Likewise, some at the Sentinel were angered by a letter Gene Miller wrote to the editor of the Sentinel’s editorial page, an old friend of Miller’s. Miller argued for Spaziano’s innocence and he included copies of the Herald’s coverage. In the Sentinel newsroom, Miller’s letter was taken as arrogance and insult. As if they hadn’t been reading the Herald’s coverage! Years ago, in college, Michael Griffin was an enthusiastic proponent of the death penalty. Then he read Invitation to a Lynching, Gene Miller’s 1976 book about the Pitts and Lee case. The book left him far more skeptical of the death penalty, though not quite an opponent. It also made him an admirer of Miller and his brand of crusading journalism. Covering the Spaziano story has changed Griffin’s mind—about Miller and the death penalty. “I am 100 percent opposed to the death penalty,” he says. How can the ultimate punishment possibly be fair if it is subject to the whims and judgments of newspapers? “Cops don’t matter, prosecutors don’t matter, judges don’t matter, juries don’t matter. Gene Miller is all that matters,” Griffin says bitterly. “He’s gonna sit back 20 years later and decide this guy is innocent.” So which newspaper got it right? Only Spaziano knows for sure. Last month a judge granted him a new trial. “In the United States of America every person, no matter how unsavory, is entitled to due process of the law and a fair trial,” the judge ruled. “The defendant received neither.” Prosecutors are appealing. It could be months before that appeal is resolved, and even longer if a jury ever gets a chance to sort through this tangled case. If and when that happens, count on one thing. The Herald and the Sentinel will be there, each in pursuit of the truth. Times researchers Kitty Bennett and Carolyn Hardnett contributed to this story. [End of Article] Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Barstow, David Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Debes, Elizabeth Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The two Crazy Joes Subject The topic of the resource Spaziano, Crazy Joe Description An account of the resource As two newspapers, the Herald and the Sentinel, cover the same story of Joseph "Crazy Joe" Spaziano, they report two completely different stories. David Barstow evaluates why these two reliable newspapers published two different views of the case, as well as asking the question of which one was correct in the end. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Barstow, David Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Barstow, David. "The two Crazy Joes." St. Petersburg Times, February, 1996. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 02-25-1996 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 5 JPGS Language A language of the resource English Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant St. Petersburg, FL "Crazy Joe" Spaziano 1995 Against Execution court cases Court decisions and opinions. criminal defense death penalty Florida capital sentencing statute Florida death penalty Florida Death Row Florida newspapers Gene Miller newspaper The Herald The Sentinel https://hist299.umwhistory.org/files/original/4678670355034aae98fc81d4b2c9536a.jpg d5061fd592d2a705e48d158d59e0002b Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Michael A. Mello Papers, Series 1 News Clippings, Binder 4 Text Text Any textual data included in the document [Author] Colman McCarthy [Title] States Streamline Machinery of Death Last year rests as a record-setting year for state-sanctioned homicides: 56 men executed at a cost estimated by Duke University researchers at $2.1 million per death. Jan 25 and 26 are likely to go into the books also: successive days on which one state hanged a man by rope and another state killed with bullets. Both executions were well reported, given the novelty of gallows and firing squads at a time when legislatures are increasingly sanctioning drugging people to death. Lethal injection has a softness to it, almost a cruelty-free medical aura, which allows state governments to have it both ways: to kill humanely. The Delaware hanging of Billy Bailey and the shooting 26 hours later of John Albert Taylor in Utah lacked the ordinariness that might have allowed these two executions to pass unnoticed beyond prison walls. The methods of killing-- not the killing itself-- caused uneasiness among politicians in both states. Bailey and Taylor could have chosen to go quietly, lying down on a gurney and having a vein opened. Instead, they rejected taking up the states' option of a lethal drug. As a result, international television crews along with major U.S. networks poured into the remote prison towns of Smyrna, Del., and Point of the Mountain, Utah. The power of TV visuals was at work. How often does a chance come along to get footage of a well- constructed wooden gallows and a trapdoor swinging open in a dry run for the cameras? Or to film the firing squad room and its sandbag-supported death chair complete with a spill device to catch the blood? The day before these two executions, Virginia executed a man by lethal injection. This was almost a non-story, except that death chamber technicians needed 30 minutes to locate a suitable vein, finally settling for one just above the foot. It is not likely that executioners in Delaware and Utah will earn this much international and national publicity again. Delaware switched to lethal injection in 1986 but Bailey, sentenced before then, rejected the choice. In Utah, politicians have introduced a bill to ban the firing squad for future death sentences. Many states are giving condemned prisoners choices in dying. Capital punishment advocates who see this as an unwarranted turn toward mercy-- why give these heinous murderers a choice?-- need not be alarmed. Legislatures aren't getting soft, they're getting practical. First, they are making capital punishment more palatable, should a clamor arise that death by hanging, shooting, electrocution or gassing is barbaric and bad for the state's image. Second, and far more important, is that the offering of choices protects the state against spending still more money in legal expenses. Death penalty sentencing is a post-conviction procedure, akin to another trial with full deliberations and arguments. In most states, juries decide whether murderers deserve death. In some, judges rule. In a few, judges, usually running for reelection, can override juries that reject a capital sentence. If those now on death row were not given choices they would have a legal opening to demand a new sentencing trial. Their reasoned argument would be: I was sentenced to die one way and now the rules are changing and I am forced to die another way. I should have another sentencing trial. Fearing that appeals courts might agree, states end-run this by offering a choice: The condemned are not being forced to accept another method; the first one remains available. Trail judges and prosecutors abhor new trials, whether on questions of guilt or sentencing. Evidence not originally available-- either because inexperienced defense lawyers didn't know how to gather it or because it was suppressed by prosecutors-- often has a way of showing up years later. Days before the Delaware and Utah executions, Joseph Spaziano, a Florida death row inmate for nearly 20 years, had one of the rarest of legal victories. A Florida circuit court, vacating both hid conviction and sentence, ordered a new trial. A combination of nonjudicial forces-- the doggedness of Spaziano's attorneys, including Prof. Michael Mello of the Vermont Law School, and reporters from the Miami Herald-- persistently presented evidence of grave doubts of the condemned man's guilt. It was said: Well, the system worked. In fact, it was lawyers and reporters who worked. The legal system did its powerful best to kill. Student Editor of the Digital Item Williams, Megan Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Contributor of the Digital Item Person submitting the digital item to the collection. Kabre, Timbila Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource States Streamline Machinery of Death Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available HIST 298, University of Mary Washington Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source. Language A language of the resource English Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1996-02-06 Description An account of the resource After the deaths of Billy Bailey and John Albert Taylor, states are being faced with how to go about offering the most humane capital punishment. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource McCarthy, Colman Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived McCarthy, Colman. "States Streamline Machinery of Death." The Washington Post, February 6, 1996. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 1 JPG 300 DPI Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Smyrna, Delaware Point of the Mountain, Utah. Subject The topic of the resource Capital punishment--United States Billy Bailey capital punishment John Albert Taylor Joseph Spaziano Michael Mello