TIM HOWARD: Attorneys withdraw.

  • TIM HOWARD: Attorneys withdraw.

Mara Leveritt reports on developments in the legal affairs of Death Row inmate Tim Howard, which I mentioned here earlier:

Advertisement

Tim Howard received a letter this morning dated yesterday from his federal public defenders informing him that they would be filing a motion today to withdraw from his case. They cited the article on my blog and the quotes it contained from Howard’s letter to Judge Brian Miller.

The letter said, “We are very sorry you no longer trust us to properly handle your case and that you feel we have violated the canon of professional ethics.” The letter included a copy of my article, which focused on their resistance to allowing Howard to engage an additional attorney, Patrick Benca, on his defense team.

The letter announcing the federal attorneys’ decision to withdraw informed Howard that they would work with Judge Miller to see that Howard was appointed an “experienced, qualified lawyer” in their place, and that they would make his “entire file available” to the new attorney—something they insisted they were not willing to do with Benca.

The letter, signed by Jenniffer Horan, Scott Braden, Josh Lee and Jennifer Molayem of the Arkansas Federal Public Defender Office, wished Howard “best of luck.”

Public defender seem a little spiteful?

Arkansas Times: Your voice in the fight

Are you tired of watered-down news and biased reporting? The Arkansas Times has been fighting for truth and justice for 50 years. As an alternative newspaper in Little Rock, we are tough, determined, and unafraid to take on powerful forces. With over 63,000 Facebook followers, 58,000 Twitter followers, 35,000 Arkansas blog followers, and 70,000 daily email blasts, we are making a difference. But we can't do it without you. Join the 3,400 paid subscribers who support our great journalism and help us hire more writers. Sign up for a subscription today or make a donation of as little as $1 and help keep the Arkansas Times feisty for years to come.

Previous article Fonssagrives at Taylor’s Contemporanea Next article Corporate welfare a loser for Alabama on steel mill