The system may not be perfect, but it still works.

[Jeff White]

All of you who delight in ranting about police and prosecutors railroading people take note:
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/ne...B9BB7D889A1E46E9862570140051B160?OpenDocument

Murder conviction is voided by deal with felon
By Paul Hampel
Of the Post-Dispatch
06/02/2005

An Illinois appeals court has overturned a Granite City man's murder conviction and rebuked Madison County prosecutors for making deals with a violent felon in return for his testimony.

The 5th District Appellate Court in Mount Vernon ruled that prosecutors violated Jeramey Brown's right to counsel when they used a jail house snitch to secretly record Brown making death threats against witnesses in 2003.

Brown was in the Madison County Jail at the time, awaiting trial in the fatal stabbing in 2001 of Michael Keller, 40, during a burglary at Keller's home in Granite City.

Brown's cellmate was Demond Spruill, 30, who wore a wire for prosecutors. Spruill was awaiting trial himself at the time on charges of armed robbery, conspiracy to commit home invasion, aggravated discharge of a firearm and unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon.

Spruill's testimony helped convict Brown, 30. He was sentenced to 75 years in prison. Three other defendants are serving long prison terms for their part in the killing.

In writing for the appellate court, Justice Clyde Kuehn criticized Madison County prosecutors, and Keith Jensen in particular, for their long-standing "alliance" with Spruill.

"Madison County prosecutors have allowed Demond Spruill a license to arm himself, plot home invasions and shoot at people over the course of his career as a Madison County prosecution witness," Kuehn wrote. "Unquestionably, Spruill has been compensated handsomely for his testimony, with the most precious of commodities - his freedom."

The opinion, ordering a new trial, was issued on Friday and disclosed on Wednesday.

Madison County State's Attorney Bill Mudge was out of the country on vacation and unavailable for comment.

His spokeswoman, Stephanee Smith, said prosecutors "were obviously disappointed with the appellate court's decision."

"We anticipate retrying the case," she said.

Jensen prosecuted Brown's case. He retired from the state's attorney's office in 2003 after prosecuting cases for 25 years. He now is chief counsel to the Illinois State Police.

Jensen could not be reached Wednesday for comment.

Brown's trial marked the sixth murder trial over an eight-year period at which prosecutors had called on Spruill to testify.

East Alton attorney John M. Delaney was Brown's defense attorney.

The appellate court said Spruill was in effect an agent for the state in gathering information for the prosecution.

The court said, "The Sixth Amendment's right to counsel guarantees protection against what happened here," and said that it did not matter that the recorded statements related to threats on the witnesses, and were not about the murder case.

The court said Delaney should have filed a motion to suppress Spruill's testimony.

Delaney said Wednesday in an interview: "The reason I did not file a motion to suppress was because this guy (Spruill) had already been used five times at previous murder trials. I thought it was carte blanche."

Kuehn peppered his opinion with numerous allusions to Spruill's felony convictions, dating to 1991, and his knack for avoiding punishment:

"Spruill miraculously received the bare minimum prison term."

"How Spruill managed to evade his punishment is unclear."

"November 13, 2003, was Demond Spruill's lucky day. Keith Jensen moved to dismiss all the pending charges brought against Spruill in January of 2001."

Spruill's bail was revoked in April on drug charge last year out of Alton. He is now in the Madison County Jail in lieu of $150,000 bail.

Kuehn's opinion indicates he is suspect of Spruill's testimony in previous cases.

"We hope that Madison County prosecutors have not repeatedly elicited sworn testimony similar to that given here - testimony that claimed that the defendant's confession, and the assistance given to the prosecution, was only provided out of a sense of morality, rather than any hope of leniency, or expectation of favorable treatment on pending charges," Kuehn wrote.

"Spruill's unsavory past mocks his claim of noble purpose, for his criminal history belies any inkling of conscience or concern with the distinction between good and evil or right and wrong."

Reporter Paul Hampel
E-mail: [email protected]
Phone: 618-659-3639

The system isn't perfect, it's slow, but it still works.

Jeff

 

[El Tejon]

Prosecutors picking one criminal over another and aiding and abeting crime with protected CIs?

You mean such a thing happens?

I'm using that last sentence in a closing argument!

 

[dustind]

I am glad the system worked this time.

I don't see how an example of the system working has anything to do with examples of the system not working, or examples of abuse by the system.

Maybe I am missing your point, but isn't what your doing the same as say... Showing one example of a firearm or car that works as it is supposed to in response to me saying that a certain make and model of a firearm or car has problems?

I think most people are arguing that abuses are too common, not they happen 100% of the time without exception.

Edit: I am not trying to complain or be negative. I am just pointing it out.

Edit again: I like stories like the above. I hope you post more occasionally.