Charles Brown's note reminded me that Mumia's defense attorney has maintained that he lacked competency. Combined with the problem with the coroner, which was not brought up at the trial, I'm willing to... well, at least withdraw my contention that he doesn't deserve a new trial.
That still leaves the small matter of whether or not he killed Officer Faulkner. I know a lot of you would like to sweep that itsy, bitsy concern under the rug, but it's bound to come up at the second trial. And some explanation will be made of why Mumia was found with a dead cop's bullet in him and a gun in his hand. The jurors will want to know why he got out of his cab and approached a soon dead policeman.
It's probable that after all these years there will still be enough evidence left from the original investigation and enough witnesses who were not lying eyewitnesses for the prosecution to make the case that Mumia actually shot the cop.
The defense will have their chance to remain silence or to offer some explanation.
If I were defending Mumia, I'd want to know what that explanation was going to be, so that I wasn't putting in a lot of energy getting a new trial for someone who was just going to be found guilty again.
There's no chance of a plea bargain. The District Attourney just won't plead this case, especially not now.
I guess what Mumia's defenders have to look forward to-- the most probable pro-Mumia outcome-- is that after 16 years, some of the evidence will have been lost and some of the witnesses will have died and some of the evidence may even be ruled inadmissable.
Of course, the headline in the newspapers will be something like "Copkiller Goes Free on Technicality" or some such and then because most everyone who's looked at this case in detail believes there was enough evidence to convict originally, this will lead to more politicians looking for some way to weaken the exclusionary rule...
Wait, maybe you guys are on the right track after all. Mumia probably wouldn't shoot another cop and even if he did...yeah you guys go ahead with your cause and plenty of luck, too.
James in Philly
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