“An execution date
should not be scheduled because Mr LaMar’s death sentence is precisely
the sort identified by the Joint Task Force to Review the Administration
of Ohio’s Death Penalty. Mr LaMar’s conviction rests on prisoner
testimony which is not independently corroborated; there is no physical
or video evidence linking him to the crimes and he has always maintained
his innocence. Evidence supporting Mr LaMar’s innocence is slowly
coming to light after dogged efforts to unearth such proof following
years of suppression.” -excerpt from motion.
Keith LaMar’s attorneys filed this response to prosecutor Mark Piepmeier’s motion requesting an execution date. Piepmeier was lead attorney on the Lucasville Uprising cases, and largely responsible for egregious misconduct and deal-making that secured these convictions based on informant testimony and withheld evidence. He has a documented pattern of doing the same to other defendants.
Keith LaMar’s attorneys filed this response to prosecutor Mark Piepmeier’s motion requesting an execution date. Piepmeier was lead attorney on the Lucasville Uprising cases, and largely responsible for egregious misconduct and deal-making that secured these convictions based on informant testimony and withheld evidence. He has a documented pattern of doing the same to other defendants.
The response starts by pointing out ways that Keith’s case fits within recommendations made by the joint task force on death penalty cases,
specifically: relying on uncorroborated snitch testimony,
disproportionately targeting black people, and relying on evidence
improperly withheld at trial. It goes on to detail that withheld
evidence, including statements by trial witnesses and others that could
easily cast reasonable doubt if not fully exonerate Keith if he were
afforded a new trial.