softheart
10-25-2004, 11:39 AM
'I can't believe they still want to kill me' - But killer has support from
the victim's wife, sons
Dominique Green rubs his hand over his shaved head as his eyes dart around
the small iron stall. There's no time to discuss the past. His scheduled
execution is days away, and he would rather talk about the power of
redemption.
"I had 2 choices when I came to death row," says Green, 30, from behind
the thick glass window that separates inmates from visitors. "I could
either believe I was a monster or prove to everyone I wasn't."
Green is to die by injection Tuesday for the 1992 murder of Andrew
Lastrapes Jr., who was gunned down during an early-morning robbery in
southwest Houston. Lastrapes was one of 10 people robbed during a 3-day
crime spree.
Green has admitted to participating in the robbery but denies being the
triggerman in the murder. He was 18 when the crime was committed.
His case has garnered the support of an unlikely array of people,
including Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu, who earlier this year
traveled from South Africa to visit Green on death row. Last week, the
victim's widow and two grown sons issued a public appeal to spare Green's
life.
"All of us have forgiven Dominique for what happened and want to give him
another chance at life," the victim's wife, Bernatte Luckett Lastrapes,
wrote in a letter to Gov. Rick Perry and the Texas Board of Pardons and
Paroles. "Everyone deserves another chance."
That act of forgiveness was the culmination of a long journey, which took
place largely within Green's 6-by-10-foot prison cell.
Lessons of the street
Green recently talked at length about that journey.
By the time he landed on death row at 19, Green said he had survived an
abusive home and the tough streets of Houston's Third Ward. He had been
arrested for selling drugs and spent two years in juvenile hall. Every
lesson he learned he learned from the streets.
But growing up with a mentally ill mother and running with a gang of
small-time criminals didn't prepare him for life on death row, locked up
for 23 hours a day.
Using art to combat the austerity of prison life, Green carries a stack of
battered notebooks filled with drawings and poetry about youth, life on
death row and missed opportunities. He counsels younger inmates and helps
others research the law.
And he struggles with the heartache of losing friends to the executioner's
needle.
"I've lost a lot of friends since I've been here," he said. "I just try to
write about their experiences and keep their memories alive by talking
about the good times we had."
None was as painful as the Oct. 5 execution of his childhood friend Edward
Green, who was condemned for the murder of an elderly couple 12 years ago.
The two friends, who were not related, talked about everything. Days
before their death warrants were signed, they wondered who would be
executed first.
"He hoped he went before me because he didn't think he could take mine,"
Green said softly into the receiver of the prison phone.
But while Green argues for a second chance at life, victims' rights
activists counter that transforming oneself in prison isn't as difficult
as one might think.
"It's kind of hard to maintain the same lifestyle you had on the streets
when you're in prison," said Andy Kahan, the Houston mayor's crime
victims' advocate.
Changes 'irrelevant'
He said Green's accomplishments are notable but cannot atone for the
crime.
"More power to him for whatever he's done in prison to change his life,
but it's irrelevant in the scheme of things," said Kahan. "It was the
wrong decision to murder and rob people and cause family members a
lifetime of pain.
It doesn't diminish the consequences of your actions, no matter what you
do on death row."
Though he doesn't want to die, the boyish-looking Green expressed
gratitude for the lessons he learned from some of the most violent
criminals in the state.
"There are a lot of great men here," he said. "They taught me things I
wouldn't have learned otherwise. They taught me about responsibility and
respect and how to be a human being."
A prison spokeswoman said Green has had no major disciplinary action
against him on death row and is considered a level one prisoner, which
means he is one of the best-behaved and least restricted.
"I look at my life and all I've done, and I can't believe they still want
to kill me," he said.
Defense attorneys are using more than Green's accomplishments to try to
halt his execution.
They say he should be granted a new trial because racial bias may have
played a role in his conviction.
4th man not charged
2 men who were with Green the night Lastrapes was killed received lesser
prison terms for robbery. A fourth man was not charged. All three
testified against Green.
The 3 who were convicted were black, and the 1 white man in the group was
never charged despite the fact that police originally intended to charge
him with robbery, said David Dow, director of Texas Innocence Network and
one of the attorneys representing Green.
Dow also said recent revelations at the Houston Police Department could
have a bearing on Green's case.
The key evidence at his trial was a ballistics test performed by the HPD
crime lab, linking a gun found in the car in which Green and two others
were apprehended to the bullet that killed Lastrapes.
Citing errors in other work at the crime lab, Dow said this test also
could be flawed.
Furthermore, in August, police found 280 boxes of mislabeled and
improperly stored evidence from 8,000 cases dating more than a decade.
Dow said it would be unlawful to execute Green until that evidence is
inventoried.
Crime lab doubts
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals struck down a motion last week to
delay Green's execution, even though Judge Tom Price said in a dissenting
vote that all executions in cases whose convictions rested on evidence
processed at the HPD crime lab should be postponed until the evidence can
be independently verified.
Dow says he plans to file a new request for a stay of execution today.
"The District Attorney's Office continues to urge the courts to go forward
with executions, even though nobody knows whether HPD possesses evidence
related to the murder of Mr. Lastrapes or the other crimes the state
introduced during Mr. Green's trial," he said.
Assistant District Attorney Jack Roady denied that race played a role in
the plea-bargain deals that were made with Green's co-defendants.
He also said concerns over the 280 boxes of evidence are unfounded.
"His lawyers have not pointed to anything specific or any missing
evidence," he said. "All of the evidence from the case is accounted for."
Plea deal rejected
Green said he rejected a 30-year plea deal before his trial began because
he was innocent. A week before his execution date, he said he does not
regret his decision.
"I would have been too busy (in prison) thinking about what I was going to
do when I got out," he said. "I wouldn't have had time to try to change my
life."
The son of Andrew Lastrapes Jr. plans to visit Green on death row today.
Last week, Andre Luckett Lastrapes, 22, speaking on behalf of his family,
publicly asked the state to spare Green's life.
Green said he is scared to be optimistic about his future. "I hope for the
best," he said. "But I know the worst is right around the corner."
(source: Houston Chronicle)
the victim's wife, sons
Dominique Green rubs his hand over his shaved head as his eyes dart around
the small iron stall. There's no time to discuss the past. His scheduled
execution is days away, and he would rather talk about the power of
redemption.
"I had 2 choices when I came to death row," says Green, 30, from behind
the thick glass window that separates inmates from visitors. "I could
either believe I was a monster or prove to everyone I wasn't."
Green is to die by injection Tuesday for the 1992 murder of Andrew
Lastrapes Jr., who was gunned down during an early-morning robbery in
southwest Houston. Lastrapes was one of 10 people robbed during a 3-day
crime spree.
Green has admitted to participating in the robbery but denies being the
triggerman in the murder. He was 18 when the crime was committed.
His case has garnered the support of an unlikely array of people,
including Nobel Peace Prize winner Desmond Tutu, who earlier this year
traveled from South Africa to visit Green on death row. Last week, the
victim's widow and two grown sons issued a public appeal to spare Green's
life.
"All of us have forgiven Dominique for what happened and want to give him
another chance at life," the victim's wife, Bernatte Luckett Lastrapes,
wrote in a letter to Gov. Rick Perry and the Texas Board of Pardons and
Paroles. "Everyone deserves another chance."
That act of forgiveness was the culmination of a long journey, which took
place largely within Green's 6-by-10-foot prison cell.
Lessons of the street
Green recently talked at length about that journey.
By the time he landed on death row at 19, Green said he had survived an
abusive home and the tough streets of Houston's Third Ward. He had been
arrested for selling drugs and spent two years in juvenile hall. Every
lesson he learned he learned from the streets.
But growing up with a mentally ill mother and running with a gang of
small-time criminals didn't prepare him for life on death row, locked up
for 23 hours a day.
Using art to combat the austerity of prison life, Green carries a stack of
battered notebooks filled with drawings and poetry about youth, life on
death row and missed opportunities. He counsels younger inmates and helps
others research the law.
And he struggles with the heartache of losing friends to the executioner's
needle.
"I've lost a lot of friends since I've been here," he said. "I just try to
write about their experiences and keep their memories alive by talking
about the good times we had."
None was as painful as the Oct. 5 execution of his childhood friend Edward
Green, who was condemned for the murder of an elderly couple 12 years ago.
The two friends, who were not related, talked about everything. Days
before their death warrants were signed, they wondered who would be
executed first.
"He hoped he went before me because he didn't think he could take mine,"
Green said softly into the receiver of the prison phone.
But while Green argues for a second chance at life, victims' rights
activists counter that transforming oneself in prison isn't as difficult
as one might think.
"It's kind of hard to maintain the same lifestyle you had on the streets
when you're in prison," said Andy Kahan, the Houston mayor's crime
victims' advocate.
Changes 'irrelevant'
He said Green's accomplishments are notable but cannot atone for the
crime.
"More power to him for whatever he's done in prison to change his life,
but it's irrelevant in the scheme of things," said Kahan. "It was the
wrong decision to murder and rob people and cause family members a
lifetime of pain.
It doesn't diminish the consequences of your actions, no matter what you
do on death row."
Though he doesn't want to die, the boyish-looking Green expressed
gratitude for the lessons he learned from some of the most violent
criminals in the state.
"There are a lot of great men here," he said. "They taught me things I
wouldn't have learned otherwise. They taught me about responsibility and
respect and how to be a human being."
A prison spokeswoman said Green has had no major disciplinary action
against him on death row and is considered a level one prisoner, which
means he is one of the best-behaved and least restricted.
"I look at my life and all I've done, and I can't believe they still want
to kill me," he said.
Defense attorneys are using more than Green's accomplishments to try to
halt his execution.
They say he should be granted a new trial because racial bias may have
played a role in his conviction.
4th man not charged
2 men who were with Green the night Lastrapes was killed received lesser
prison terms for robbery. A fourth man was not charged. All three
testified against Green.
The 3 who were convicted were black, and the 1 white man in the group was
never charged despite the fact that police originally intended to charge
him with robbery, said David Dow, director of Texas Innocence Network and
one of the attorneys representing Green.
Dow also said recent revelations at the Houston Police Department could
have a bearing on Green's case.
The key evidence at his trial was a ballistics test performed by the HPD
crime lab, linking a gun found in the car in which Green and two others
were apprehended to the bullet that killed Lastrapes.
Citing errors in other work at the crime lab, Dow said this test also
could be flawed.
Furthermore, in August, police found 280 boxes of mislabeled and
improperly stored evidence from 8,000 cases dating more than a decade.
Dow said it would be unlawful to execute Green until that evidence is
inventoried.
Crime lab doubts
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals struck down a motion last week to
delay Green's execution, even though Judge Tom Price said in a dissenting
vote that all executions in cases whose convictions rested on evidence
processed at the HPD crime lab should be postponed until the evidence can
be independently verified.
Dow says he plans to file a new request for a stay of execution today.
"The District Attorney's Office continues to urge the courts to go forward
with executions, even though nobody knows whether HPD possesses evidence
related to the murder of Mr. Lastrapes or the other crimes the state
introduced during Mr. Green's trial," he said.
Assistant District Attorney Jack Roady denied that race played a role in
the plea-bargain deals that were made with Green's co-defendants.
He also said concerns over the 280 boxes of evidence are unfounded.
"His lawyers have not pointed to anything specific or any missing
evidence," he said. "All of the evidence from the case is accounted for."
Plea deal rejected
Green said he rejected a 30-year plea deal before his trial began because
he was innocent. A week before his execution date, he said he does not
regret his decision.
"I would have been too busy (in prison) thinking about what I was going to
do when I got out," he said. "I wouldn't have had time to try to change my
life."
The son of Andrew Lastrapes Jr. plans to visit Green on death row today.
Last week, Andre Luckett Lastrapes, 22, speaking on behalf of his family,
publicly asked the state to spare Green's life.
Green said he is scared to be optimistic about his future. "I hope for the
best," he said. "But I know the worst is right around the corner."
(source: Houston Chronicle)