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"For the past few decades, Williamson County has had a reputation for being tough on crime, when compared to other counties in Texas. I think we can do better than that. We should be SMART on crime--tough on criminal defendants when we need to be, but always keeping in mind that every crime has its own facts and every person accused of committing a crime has his/her own unique background. Not everyone who commits a felony in our county is a hardened criminal...
(5) creation of a Veterans' Court in Williamson County for those military veterans who have been diagnosed with brain injury or mental illness that occurred because they were in a war zone. Veterans’ Courts are authorized under Texas law, but Williamson County does not have one yet.
Here is how a Veterans’ Court works: After a military veteran meets strict criteria, then the prosecutor must agree, on a case by case basis, to allow a particular military veteran to go into this court. Then the prosecutor and defense attorney create a treatment plan.
If the veteran completes the treatment plan and the prosecutor agrees they have been rehabilitated, there is no conviction and their record may be expunged (wiped clean). If not, then they will be required to go back through the justice system just like anyone else accused of a crime. As a Naval Academy graduate and as a military veteran myself, I believe that military veterans are deserving of this special program because of their prior service to our country.
The Michael Morton case has exposed some real shortcomings in the local criminal justice system. We learned in 2011 that Michael Morton spent almost 25 years in Texas state prisons after being wrongfully prosecuted and convicted in a 1987 jury trial for murdering his wife, Christine. The Michael Morton case has been extremely well covered in the local, state, and national media. It has given the local justice system a black eye and brought some very negative attention to Williamson County and our justice system. Investigations continue so that we may learn exactly what went wrong with the prosecution of a completely innocent man. We must see to it that it can never happen again.
The Morton case has all the elements of a John Grisham novel, but if it were just a novel or a Hollywood movie it would probably not be credible to most people. An innocent man's life was destroyed while he sat in prison for almost 25 years while the real killer remained free and probably killed again.
Christine Morton was murdered in this county in August 1986; her husband Michael Morton went to prison for almost 25 years and their son Eric grew up believing that his father killed his mother. The State of Texas spent approximately $25,000 a year for 25 years to wrongfully imprison Michael Morton and now the taxpayers of Williamson County and the State of Texas will compensate Michael to the tune of two million dollars ($80,000 per year for the time he was imprisoned) as well as pay him a sizable annuity for the rest of his life. I believe that Michael Morton deserves to be financially compensated, but of course this whole mess should never have happened and the people who did this should be held accountable.
It is hard to imagine how a criminal justice system could possibly manage to screw up a serious felony case any worse.
At a February 10, 2012, hearing, visiting Judge Side Harle ordered that a Court of Inquiry be established to look into this mess. Here is a link to a Texas Tribune story that discusses the Morton case and the February 10 hearing: http://www.texastribune.org/texas-dept-criminal-justice/michael-morton/judge-decide-former-prosecutor-court-inquiry/
Here is a link to a February 16, 2012, Texas Tribune story about the appointment of Fort Worth District Judge Louis Sturns to lead a court of inquiry to investigate allegations of criminal prosecutorial misconduct against former prosecutor (and current district judge) Ken Anderson, who saw to the wrongful murder conviction of Michael Morton in 1987. http://www.texastribune.org/texas-dept-criminal-justice/michael-morton/ft-worth-judge-lead-ken-anderson-court-inquiry/print/#
The incumbent DA, John Bradley, did not participate in the original prosecution of Michael Morton but he stubbornly kept him in prison for an additional seven years because Mr. Bradley foolishly refused to agree to modern DNA testing of all the evidence collected at the time of the 1986 murder. This was despite the fact that DNA testing had already proved the innocence of 44 men in Texas prisons over the past ten years in serious felony cases involving circumstantial evidence or faulty eyewitness identification. Bradley's refusal to consent to DNA testing was also despite the fact that the taxpayers were not going to be footing the bill for the DNA testing--the Innocence Project was going to pay for the testing.
Mr. Bradley's refusal to agree to the DNA testing was completely irrational under the circumstances and resulted in an innocent Michael Morton staying in a Texas prison for several additional years and the real killer remaining on the streets to possibly do additional harm for several additional years.
I am running for District Attorney because the problems in the DA's office require the leadership of a reformer, someone who has not been part of the broken system. We should make sure that there are NO MORE MICHAEL MORTON's."
"Regardless of how the Michael Morton case unfolds from this point forward, I would love to see the Williamson County Justice Center in Georgetown, where all of our serious criminal and civil cases are litigated, renamed as the "Christine and Michael Morton Justice Center."
Neither one of the Mortons received appropriate justice in this case. If the building was renamed in honor of the Mortons, we would have a constant reminder of what happens when justice is mismanaged by the people who administer and supervise the local justice system."
TEXT OF PRESS RELEASE ANNOUNCING RUN FOR DISTRICT ATTORNEY
October 31, 2011
Georgetown attorney Ken Crain announced today that he will seek the Democratic nomination for Williamson County District Attorney.
“The current DA is more interested in convictions than finding the truth. Williamson County residents expect a criminal justice system that is tough on crime, without being light on justice. Michael Morton sat in a Texas prison for a crime he did not commit several years longer than necessary, because the current DA used every legal maneuver at his command to frustrate and delay the public’s right to know the truth. In my view,” Crain said, “it is completely irrational for a DA to oppose DNA or other scientific testing, applying today’s technology to old evidence. If it proves the person in prison is guilty, it confirms that justice has been served. If it shows that an innocent person is imprisoned, that is something that the district attorney should want to know.”
“We now know that Michael Morton is a victim of the Williamson County criminal justice system. Let’s make sure that this never happens again.”
Crain, 57, has practiced law in Williamson County continuously since 1985. He served as assistant county attorney for two years, prosecuting hundreds of misdemeanor criminal cases. Since opening his private law practice in 1986, Crain has defended felony and misdemeanor criminal cases, worked on divorce and other family law cases, drafted wills and handled probate cases.
Crain and wife Micki have been married for 35 years. They have one daughter, Dr. Allyn Crain, a chiropractor with an office in Salado.
Ken Crain graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, in June 1976, with a B.S. in Marine Engineering. He served on active duty in the U.S. Navy from 1976 until 1981 as a surface warfare officer. He also served in the U.S. Navy Reserves from 1981 to 1987 in Austin, Texas, and left the navy as a lieutenant commander.
Crain graduated from the University of Texas School of Law in May, 1984. He has been licensed to practice law in Texas since November, 1984.
Crain believes that voters are ready for new leadership in our criminal justice system. “I am a Democrat running for District Attorney because the problems in the DA's office will require the leadership of a reformer, someone who hasn't been part of the broken system that has made our streets less safe, sent innocent people to prison and sought to suppress and cover up past prosecutorial misconduct.”
“I believe that there is a mature, rational, reasonable way to prosecute criminal defendants and, if appropriate, to make decisions not to prosecute a particular individual,” Crain said. “The prosecutor’s job is not to rack up as many convictions as possible; it is to see that justice is done.”
Primary elections for the Democratic and Republican parties in Texas are finally scheduled for Tuesday, May 29, 2012.
Ken Crain is running unopposed in the Democratic Primary. The incumbent DA, John Bradley, is being challenged in the Republican Primary by Jana Duty, who is the incumbent County Attorney. She decided to challenge John Bradley rather than seek re-election to the County Attorney position. Ken will face either John Bradley or Jana Duty in the general election in November.
The general election will be held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012.
Political Ad Paid For by Ken Crain for District Attorney, PO Box 956, Georgetown, TX 78627-0956, John Duer, Attorney at Law, Treasurer
