When in doubt, don?t execute

Tennessee should not have executed Philip Workman. There were too many question marks, too many doubts.

For a state that executes prisoners about as often as a man walks on the moon, it?s curious the powers that be in Tennessee state government would choose this man to kill. Is anybody sure he fired the shot that killed a Memphis policeman over 25 years ago?

The answer is no. And since that?s the answer, the state had absolutely no business killing Workman.

Now before I get labeled a bleeding heart tree hugger, let me emphasize that I?m fully in favor of the death penalty under the right circumstances. And I?ll convey one of those circumstances to you now.

Say a guy robs a bank and in the process kills two tellers and a bank customer. His getaway doesn?t last long and he?s stopped by police two blocks away.

In his car they find a mask, a bag of money and a gun. Ballistics match the bullets from the bodies to the gun found in the car. And there are eyewitnesses who say they saw the car screech from the bank parking lot and travel roughly two blocks before being stopped by officers.

In such a scenario, I?m fully in favor of a speedy trial and a speedy execution. There?s no reason for nine years worth of appeals all the way to the Supreme Court. There?s no doubt the guy is guilty and he deserves capital punishment.

Another hypothetical example where the death penalty is appropriate is for a woman who murders her husband while he sleeps. That is unless the woman was asked to wear high heels.

By contrast, the Philip Workman case is a classic example of Pin the Tail on the Donkey. Prosecutors have made claims but they don?t really know if those accusations are close to the mark.

During trial, it was successfully argued that Workman shot and killed a policeman during a restaurant robbery. However, it?s been loudly asserted that a police officer, not Workman, fired the fatal blast.

There is considerable proof to support this claim. For starters:

? The only scientific evidence on record, the testimony of Dr. Cyril Wecht, said Workman?s bullet could not have been the fatal shot. Furthermore, the FBI found there was no fiber, cloth or blood on Workman?s bullet so it could have not have entered the victim?s body.

? The only eyewitness has recanted his trial testimony. Harold Davis said police and prosecutors coached his testimony and he reiterated this claim over 10 times during appeal hearings. However, his initial testimony is the only one that?s been given credibility.

? Officers at the crime scene lied about not firing their weapons when it?s been proven they did.

All of this adds up to enough reasonable suspicion to indicate Workman did not kill a Memphis police officer. I know I fully have my doubts.

I say that with the complete understanding Workman was no saint. By all accounts, it was his 1981 robbery of a fast-food restaurant that lead to a police shootout where one officer was wounded and Lt. Ronald Oliver was killed.

He deserved a long prison sentence and he had served a long prison sentence. There was justice.

But there can never be justice for executing a man who might not be guilty of the crime for which he is convicted. That should never occur, especially in a state that didn?t use the death penalty from 1960 to 2000.

With that record, it?s safe to say Tennessee has been extremely cautious when it comes to executions. Why toss that philosophy out the window when it comes to Philip Workman?

James Clark is editor of the Standard. He can be reached at 473-2191 or by e-mail at [email protected].