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Joseph Clark, OH - May 2
Do Not Execute Joseph Clark!
Joseph Clark
May 2, 2006
Ohio
Joseph Clark, OH – May 2
Do Not Execute Joseph Clark!
Joseph Clark, a 57-year-old black man, faces execution on May 2 for the murder of David A. Manning.In January of 1984, Clark, armed with a gun, is said to have entered the Lucas County convenience store where Manning was working.He demanded money, which Manning gave him.Clark insisted that there was more, and Manning eventually produced an envelope containing more money.At this point, Manning allegedly “tried to ‘force his way on [Clark].’”Clark then shot Manning and fled the scene of the crime.He was apprehended following a bank robbery a few days later.Police matched the gun from the robbery to the bullet used to kill Manning.
Shortly after he was arrested, Joseph Clark tried to hang himself in his jail cell.He was taken to the hospital, where he remained for several days.Upon his release from the hospital, Clark was taken to the police station where detectives explained his Miranda rights to him and had him sign a form indicating that he understood these rights.Then, Clark signed another section of the form, indicating that he waived his Miranda rights, before confessing to the murder of David Manning.A psychiatrist familiar with Clark’s case testified at trial that Clark had a sufficiently low I.Q. to be considered “borderline defective” and that on top of this, his mental functioning had been impaired by brain damage sustained during his suicide attempt.Nonetheless, Clark’s confession was introduced at trial and Clark was found guilty.
In preparing his appeal, Clark hired a neuropsychologist, who found Clark to have Organic Brain Syndrome (a physical disorder in the brain) which existed before the suicide attempt, but was likely agitated by it.The neuropsychologist went on to say that this disorder could cause Clark’s mental abilities to become significantly diminished, especially when he is under stress.Clark argued before the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals that his attorney was defective for failing to discover this information at the time of the trial.Though the majority opinion disagreed, Judge Gilbert Merritt filed a dissenting opinion.Merritt stated that, in accordance with the U.S. Supreme Court’s holding in Rompilla v. Beard, Clark’s trial lawyer should have investigated Clark’s mental disability and presented his findings as mitigating evidence.
Clark’s diminished mental capacity should keep him off of death row for two reasons.First, his Organic Brain Syndrome and history of substance abuse at the time of the crime should be sufficient mitigation to preclude his execution.Second, those same factors, along with the brain damage caused by his suicide attempt, should make his confession inadmissible, as he likely didn’t understand his rights, or perhaps even realize what he was saying.It would be completely irresponsible to permit this execution to proceed.
Please write to Gov. Bob Taft on behalf of Joseph Clark!
