In Klobuchar's past, questions about a teen jailed for life

[WhiskeyGrinder]

https://apnews.com/3417e8e96a8acba905a6c54cd9757f0c

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — During a presidential debate, Amy Klobuchar defended her tough-on-crime record during her days as a top Minneapolis prosecutor.

She recounted a story that has helped propel her political career, including her 2007 Senate bid: Members of the African American community were seeking justice for kids killed in gun violence, she said. When a little girl was struck by a stray bullet while doing homework at the dining room table, Klobuchar’s office helped put away the shooter.

But what if Myon Burrell — a black teen sentenced to life in prison — was innocent?

(snip)

With no gun, no DNA, no fingerprints, the case against Burrell revolved around a teen rival who gave conflicting accounts of the shooting. Later, police turned to jailhouse informants, some of whom say they were coached and have since recanted. Alibis were not questioned. Key evidence has gone missing or was never obtained, including a convenience store surveillance tape that Burrell and others say would have cleared him. And the chief homicide detective was caught on camera offering cash for information -- even if it was just hearsay.

[EveHammond13]

1. why post this

[WhiskeyGrinder]

3. Prosecutors' records are an important source of information when vetting candidates. They

are vulnerable in a way that policymakers aren't so much, so it's interesting to dig into decisions and outcomes they had a hand in.

[EveHammond13]

2. if I want to read this I'll follow @GOP on twitter

[SaschaHM]

4. All that scrutiny of Kamala and Amy's record gets a pass.

I hope now that she's racking up endorsements and is in VP contention that her prosecutorial record gets an accurate vetting.

[Fresh_Start]

5. Is there any information whatsoever

that Amy knowingly prosecuted someone who she knew to be innocent?

Nothing I read in the story.

Cop malfeasance maybe, but prosecutor no such indication.

[squirecam]

7. Exactly

Nt

[Jim__]

6. Myon Burrell was re-tried and re-convicted after Klobuchar left the county attorney's office.

I don't believe Klobuchar was involved in the 2nd trial. Some more information and an excerpt:

A spokesperson for her campaign told AP that Myron Burrell was tried and convicted twice in Tyesha’s murder — the second time when Klobuchar was no longer the Hennepin County attorney. If there’s new evidence, she said, it should be immediately reviewed by the court.

Some information on the case from Findlaw:

At the conclusion of Burrell's second trial, the district court found Burrell guilty of premeditated first-degree murder, Minn.Stat. § 609.185(a)(1); premeditated first-degree murder committed for the benefit of a gang, Minn.Stat. § 609.229, subd. 2; attempted premeditated first-degree murder, Minn.Stat. § 609.185(a)(1); and attempted premeditated first-degree murder committed for the benefit of a gang, Minn.Stat. § 609.229, subd. 2. The district court found Burrell not guilty of the four counts relating to committing a crime in the course of a drive-by shooting. The court entered a judgment of conviction for premeditated first-degree murder committed for the benefit of a gang, and attempted premeditated first-degree murder committed for the benefit of a gang. The court sentenced Burrell to life plus 60 months in prison for the first conviction and to a consecutive term of 186 months in prison for the second conviction.

Burrell appealed his conviction and sentence.

Yes, Burrell could well be innocent. But that seems to be a problem with our criminal justice system more than a problem with any single prosecutor. Is there any indication that Klobuchar ever deliberately prosecuted a person she believed was innocent?

[judeling]

8. This is important and yes it will come up

Tyesha Edwards is a name that should be remembered. An 11 year old doing her homework.
The outrage was City and Metro wide. When it looked like the city police were not doing enough she brought in the Sherriff's office and the State CID for a task force. It was also the first major case where the fact that she had forced cameras into the interview room that played a big part for the public.

Myon Burrell never admitted his participation, but the other two charged did, interestingly none of them ever identified the others. But he also destroyed his own case, he fired his lawyers 6 times. After his conviction the recanting did occur and he was retried in 2008 after Amy moved to the Senate. Since then someone else has said he did it, but again those convicted with Burrell have not collaborated that.

He may be innocent, it is possible, the gangs at the time could have set him up as a patsy to take rising pressure off them. But it wasn't police pressure it was community pressure, they had their girlfriends alerting police. I now live in that neighborhood and those residents that were here at the time see no miscarriage of justice even among those who knew the players at the time.