John, it's Hank Johnson, and I'm passionate about Lady Justice being blind and fair to any and everyone who comes before her.
You may not know it, but before I started working to preserve our rights in Congress, I spent 27 years practicing criminal defense law across the State of Georgia – and one of my first cases was brought before the Supreme Court of the United States, which denied my petition to hear the case.
The rest of this email is my story about how I kept pressing for justice for my client after being denied relief by SCOTUS – but if you only have a moment today, could you chip in to help our progressive campaign to reform the far-right US Supreme Court?
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One of the very first cases that I took on as a brand-spanking new and totally green attorney was the case of Howard Jones, who had been convicted of murder and sentenced to die in Georgia’s cruel, unusual and barbaric electric chair. Howard’s execution date had been set to occur just one month after I took on the case in 1980. He had already been denied an appeal by the Georgia State Supreme Court.
This man's life was on the line, John. He was on Georgia’s Death Row with his execution date fast approaching, and without appreciation for the gravity of what I was getting myself into, I jumped at the chance to help him pro bono to get the representation he desperately needed.
The first step was to appeal the case to SCOTUS. After being denied there, we went back into state court seeking habeas corpus relief.
To make a long story short: we were finally able to get the conviction and death sentence overturned due to prosecutorial misconduct. The conviction had been obtained, and my client had been sentenced to death-on testimony that the prosecutor knew was false. In 1984 my client was set free when prosecutors decided that retrial and conviction was not possible without the testimony of the witness who had perjured himself.
I tell you this to remind you that although this was nearly 40 years ago, this same story still happens to innocent people every day – and we desperately need folks who will restore a true sense of transparency, equality, and justice in our government, so no one is denied life, liberty or due process under law.
The current Supreme Court, packed by Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell with right-wing extremist ideologues, is failing us, John. With the lack of oversight and their ever-expanding power, we've got to keep officials in Congress who will hold them accountable – and I'm proud to be leading that charge. Can you chip in to help me keep my seat so I can continue working hard to put Americans first?
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