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| Nineteen Years on Death Row |
| Teacher and students fight to prove Gregory Capehart's innocence |
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Claudia Nelson (minuetcz)  |
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Published 2006-09-27 14:21 (KST) |
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One would think that the court system is purposely made to work against those who depend on justice the most. This is the experience of Gregory K. Capehart, a poor black youth, caught up in a web of mishaps and lies that landed him in jail for a crime he did not commit.
If it were not for the students of John Dwyer, an English teacher at Lely High School in Naples, Florida, his story might have gone unnoticed, unheard and forgotten forever.
To find out more about Gregory's case I interviewed John Dwyer by email on Sept. 22, 2006. <Editor's Note> |
When did you first hear about Gregory and why did you decide to fight for him?
I was asked by Ms. Nancy Costello, to substitute for her on a pre-arranged visit to death row that she couldn't keep because she was going out of the country. One of the requirements was to submit a number of documents and a form to get permission to visit death row. I also included my wife and my son in the application.
Your students became involved with Gregory's case. Could you tell the readers about that?
 |  | |  Gregory Capehart | | | ©2006 PaxChristi | After meeting Mr. Capehart and spending the first six hours with him, my young son and I were impressed with his gentleness, his wearing a rosary around his neck, and his abilities to converse and play table games.
He sent me his photograph subsequent to our visit. I had it enlarged and put it on an easel in front of our church, St. John the Evangelist, in Naples, FL, to try to collect money from parishioners to help him with expenses such as purchasing personal items like shavers and shaving cream, pens and paper, pajamas, sheets and blankets and food from the prison "canteen" -- all of which he was not permitted to have without money.
No one in our church donated anything to help him. We collected under US$100 in eight masses attended by over 1,800 families. So I followed William Faulkner's advice in Intruder in the Dust and asked my students to help. ("If you have anything out of the ordinary to accomplish, ask the women and the children for help. They'll get it done.")
Lionel Decius, a student, had taken a class with Dr. Karen Dwyer, a substitute teacher, who had taught the books The Sixteenth Round and Lazarus and the Hurricane and the video "Hurricane."
He followed up that class with mine, senior English. I had a poster for Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment on my classroom wall. I put Gregory's picture underneath it. Lionel looked like him. Students began to jokingly harass him about it: "when did you get out, Lionel," etc.
He telephoned me one weekend and asked if it would be OK with me if he attempted to circulate a petition on campus requesting a DNA test to determine if Gregory was guilty or not. I warned Gregory, not absolutely sure of the outcome, that if his DNA were found at the crime scene, he was a dead man. He said that he was never in the room with Marlene Reeves and that the only way his DNA would show up is if it were planted. So we proceeded.
My students became quite passionate. Over 500 signatures were collected. Many letters were written. Students held car washes to make money for the effort.
What were the charges against Gregory and what was the evidence?
Gregory was accused and convicted of the rape and murder of Marlene Reeves, age 62. The evidence was a hand print on the outside of her bedroom window that matched the size of Gregory's hand. Two "witnesses" testified that they had seen him near the scene of the crime on the night in question.
A confession was extorted from Gregory under extreme duress by Pasco County sheriff's deputies. The confession seems especially damning. But it was officially banned after an appeal made long before I met Gregory. It is difficult to read it and not think Gregory is guilty. But it is a fiction, manufactured and convincingly presented to an all-white jury by the Pasco County prosecutor.
The evidence collected at the scene was kept in two locations; one the vast refrigeration facility maintained by the State of Florida, and the other at the Pasco County Sheriff's Department. There were samples collected from Ms. Marlene Reeves' body and clothing, and minutiae available for collection in 1987 -- male pubic hair follicles, etc. -- found on Ms. Reeves bed and in her room, as well as several beer cans.
The real murderers must have had a cool one as they gathered around her corpse. Strange?
The DNA evidence cleared Gregory from being at the crime scene. So why isn't he free?
Judge Babb, the fifth assigned to the five-box case (reams and reams of documents) has declared on Aug. 14, 2006 that, since no DNA evidence was found, the absence certainly indicates that the DNA evidence "lacked merit."
How is Gregory feeling at the moment?
He's in utter and total despair about the justice system ascertaining the truth. He says that the lawyers and the judges are "playing him."
How can people or organizations get involved in this case?
Please write and demand action from:
Judge Linda Babb
Dade City Courthouse
Dade City, FL 33523
And for the Republicans among us:
Kenneth W. Starr
Dean
Pepperdine Law School
Pepperdine University
24255 Pacific Coast Highway
Malibu, CA 90263
and Greg's attorney:
Mr. Daniel Hernandez
902, N. Armenia Ave.
Tampa, FL 33609
Are there any messages that you would like to give to our readers?
Please do not dismiss the plea of this largely inarticulate man. He is innocent. He has had the most important portion of any person's life robbed from him, age 20 to 39. He needs to be rehabilitated from his 19-year association with criminals who are guilty as charged. He needs to be reinserted into society as a contributing member with something to offer--however meager.
Please do all in your power to prevent the official path determined for Gregory Capehart: back to death row and lethal injection or life in prison--what for? To preserve the reputation of the prosecutor.
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©2006 OhmyNews
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1. Mrs
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Lynda Culley , 2007-08-17 22:07
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