The case of Charles Finney, a 60-year-old man on death row in Florida, is now
before the clemency authorities. He maintains that he did not commit the murder
for which he was sentenced to death. In Florida, an execution date is set if
and when clemency is denied.
On the afternoon of 16 January 1991, the body of Sandra Sutherland was found in
her home in Tampa, Florida. She was bound and gagged and had been stabbed in
the back 13 times. Charles Finney, who lived in the same apartment complex, was
arrested on 30 January 1991 after he was found to have pawned the victim's
video recorder on 16 January. He was charged with capital murder and brought to
trial in September 1992. Charles Finney testified that he did not kill Sandra
Sutherland, but that he knew her as a neighbor and had been in her home several
times when he did maintenance work at the complex (2 fingerprints of his were
found in her apartment). He testified that he found the video recorder in a bag
near the rubbish bins and decided to pawn it. The pawn shop owner confirmed
that Charles Finney had also pawned a television (neither stolen nor belonging
to Sandra Sutherland) on 15 January 1991, and that on both occasions he had
provided his correct local address even though the driving license he used for
identification still had a Georgia address on it.
A witness testified that the day before the murder, he saw "a white male, a big
guy" and Sandra Sutherland "cussing and screaming at each other" outside her
apartment. Charles Finney is African American. The witness testified that he
told the police about this incident soon after the murder but that they had
never followed up with him in trying to establish the man's identify. The
police never located the white male in question.
2 further witnesses testified that on the morning of the murder they saw
another person, known as "Bill", a white male acquaintance working at the
apartment complex, standing in Sandra Sutherland's doorway with the door open.
One testified that "as soon as [Bill] saw me, he acted like he was going to go
back in, and then he came out real quick, locked the door and walked around the
corner". The other witness corroborated this. Bill denied being in the
apartment that day, however the defense presented a detective who indicated
that he gave the police inconsistent accounts of his whereabouts. In closing
arguments, the trial prosecutor said that "this is a circumstantial evidence
case, no doubt about it" as there was no confession or eyewitness testimony.
There is also evidence that the prosecution failed to disclose certain evidence
to the defense. Charles Finney was found guilty, and on 18 September 1992,
after some 8 hours of deliberation, the jurors voted 9 to 3 for the death
penalty.
Please write immediately in English or your own language:
* Calling for Charles Finney to be granted clemency;
* Noting that the case against Charles Finney is circumstantial and the jury
was divided on the sentence;
* Expressing concern that the prosecution failed to disclose certain
information to the defense;
* Expressing your understanding of the seriousness of the crime and its
consequences.
URGENT ACTION
FLORIDA DEATH ROW INMATE SEEKS CLEMENCY
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
In 2000, a landmark study conducted at Columbia Law School in New York
concluded that US death sentences are "persistently and systematically fraught
with error". The study revealed that appeal courts had found serious errors -
those requiring a judicial remedy - in 68 % of cases. It pointed to
prosecutorial and police misconduct and inadequate defense representation as
the principal causes of error. The study expressed "grave doubt" as to whether
the courts catch all such errors.
Name: Charles Finney (m)
Issues: Death penalty, Imminent execution
UA: 124/14
Issue Date: 13 May 2014
Country: USA
HOW YOU CAN HELP
PLEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE 24 JUNE 2014 TO:
Governor Rick Scott
Office of the Governor, The Capitol
400 S. Monroe St.
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0001
USA
Email:
Rick.scott@eog.myflorida.com
Salutation: Dear Governor
Office of Executive Clemency
Florida Parole Commission,
4070 Esplanade Way
Tallahassee, FL 32399-2450
USA
Email:
ClemencyWeb@fpc.state.fl.us
Fax: 1 850 414-6031 or 1 850 488-0695
Salutation: Dear Members of the Clemency Board
Also send copies to your local representative in Congress.
Please check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after the
above date.
Please share this urgent action with your networks using this link:
http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/uaa12414.pdf
UA Network Office AIUSA 600 Pennsylvania Ave SE, Washington DC 20003
T. 202.509.8193 -- F. 202.509.8193 --E.
uan@aiusa.org --amnestyusa.org/urgent
Source: Amnesty International USA, May 2014
