sherri13
09-04-2002, 12:46 PM
Karen wrote:ACTRESS IN MERCY PLEA FOR DEATH ROW MAN
By Yakub Qureshi, PA News
Hollywood star Susan Sarandon has called for the retrial of a Scottish man
awaiting execution in America. Kenny Richey, 38, from Edinburgh, was
convicted of an arson attack that killed a three-year-old girl in Ohio. The
actress made the appeal after being approached by a group campaigning to
free Richey while she was appearing in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with
actorhusband Tim Robbins. Sarandon, who starred in anti-capital punishment
film Dead Man Walking, said new evidence uncovered by the condemned man's
defence created fresh doubts about Richey's conviction. In a statement, she
said: ``I want to add my voice to the growing campaign to have the whole
case re-examined. ``Individuals and organizations as diverse as his Holiness
the Pope, the European Parliament, the Archbishop of Canterbury and Amnesty
International believe that there is such a `reasonable doubt' over the
conviction that there should at the very least, be a retrial. ``For the
family of the victim of this crime - I have nothing but the deepest
sympathy. ``I call on the authorities in Ohio to re-examine the evidence,
listen to the voices around the world and look again at the detail of the
case.'' Richey, who has always protested his innocence, left Scotland in
1981 to start a new life in America. Weeks before a return visit to the UK,
he was arrested and sentenced to death in 1987 for the murder of toddler
Cynthia Collins and has been awaiting execution ever since. Alan Fisher, the
chief correspondent for GMTV and a supporter of the campaign, was
instrumental in contacting the actress, a noted opponent of capital
punishment, and released the statement on her behalf. He said his own fears
of a miscarriage of justice were confirmed when he eventually met the
condemned Scot in prison. He said: ``A year ago I conducted an interview
with a Brit on death row in Ohio after several organisations had raised
questions about the validity of theconviction. ``After speaking to Kenny
Richey I too became convinced of the need for at the very least a retrial.
``Susan Sarandon was sent a copy of the reports that aired on GMTV and after
her recent visit to Scotland and has released this statement.''Three years
ago, Pope John Paul wrote to the Governor of Mansfield Correctional Unit in
Ohio asking that Richey be saved from execution
By Yakub Qureshi, PA News
Hollywood star Susan Sarandon has called for the retrial of a Scottish man
awaiting execution in America. Kenny Richey, 38, from Edinburgh, was
convicted of an arson attack that killed a three-year-old girl in Ohio. The
actress made the appeal after being approached by a group campaigning to
free Richey while she was appearing in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with
actorhusband Tim Robbins. Sarandon, who starred in anti-capital punishment
film Dead Man Walking, said new evidence uncovered by the condemned man's
defence created fresh doubts about Richey's conviction. In a statement, she
said: ``I want to add my voice to the growing campaign to have the whole
case re-examined. ``Individuals and organizations as diverse as his Holiness
the Pope, the European Parliament, the Archbishop of Canterbury and Amnesty
International believe that there is such a `reasonable doubt' over the
conviction that there should at the very least, be a retrial. ``For the
family of the victim of this crime - I have nothing but the deepest
sympathy. ``I call on the authorities in Ohio to re-examine the evidence,
listen to the voices around the world and look again at the detail of the
case.'' Richey, who has always protested his innocence, left Scotland in
1981 to start a new life in America. Weeks before a return visit to the UK,
he was arrested and sentenced to death in 1987 for the murder of toddler
Cynthia Collins and has been awaiting execution ever since. Alan Fisher, the
chief correspondent for GMTV and a supporter of the campaign, was
instrumental in contacting the actress, a noted opponent of capital
punishment, and released the statement on her behalf. He said his own fears
of a miscarriage of justice were confirmed when he eventually met the
condemned Scot in prison. He said: ``A year ago I conducted an interview
with a Brit on death row in Ohio after several organisations had raised
questions about the validity of theconviction. ``After speaking to Kenny
Richey I too became convinced of the need for at the very least a retrial.
``Susan Sarandon was sent a copy of the reports that aired on GMTV and after
her recent visit to Scotland and has released this statement.''Three years
ago, Pope John Paul wrote to the Governor of Mansfield Correctional Unit in
Ohio asking that Richey be saved from execution