Blue Mass Group

Reality-based commentary on politics.

Speaking Out on the Radio

By

In case any of you Sunday morning early risers are interested…

I got a call this morning to ask if I’d go on WILD 1090 AM tomorrow morning to discuss my Election Postmortem on Benjamin LaGuer. I’m due to be on at 7:30 for about 15 minutes. As I understand it we’ll be talking about how the LaGuer issue blew up in the middle of the governor’s race and what lies ahead for LaGuer as his case goes to the SJC.

This is my third radio gig on this topic, the first two being on the Scott Allen Miller Show and the now defunct John DePetro show, both during the heat of the campaign. I also went on Greater Boston with Emily Rooney. I mention these only because the show tomorrow is the Hour of Power sponsored by the Nation of Islam. The point being that I’m glad to speak on the LaGuer issue to any audience that wants to listen. I didn’t seek out any of these invitations, they all came to me.

So if you are up at 7:30 tomorrow morning, and you feel so moved, tune in to 1090 AM. This is a relatively new experience for me and I’m not quite sure what to expect. If you have any thoughts or suggestions post them here. And please go to my BMG post on the Election Postmortem on LaGuer and add your $.02 to the discussion already underway there.

Please share widely!
fb-share-icon
Tweet
0

Comments

  2. There was a program on MSNBC this weekend about a case in Boston that involved DNA of twin brothers.  The story transcript can be read on MSNBC under “Blood Brothers”. 
    The man convicted of rape last May, Darrin Fernandez, swears he is innocent.  His twin brother has the same DNA that he has, an anomaly that occurs only in twins.  There had been two hung juries prior to this trial.  It was a very difficult case to prove. The twins even had the same tattoos.  Darrin was sentenced to 15 – 20 years for this rape and 10 to 15 in another.  He insists that he didn’t do it, that he is innocent. 
    Below is some of the transcript from the show:

    <

    p>
    Darrin Fernandez (pre-sentencing statement): First I would like to say to the court, and the media, and the public, that I’m innocent. I did not rape you. It is obvious why you would believe the government; most simple people do. Time will tell and the truth will come out. For centuries, your people have been raping and pillaging countries and still are today, with no known consequences.

    <

    p>
    ‘Kate’: That erased any, any shred of doubt I ever may have had in my mind that he didn’t do it.

    <

    p>
    James: Why?

    <

    p>
    ‘Kate’: (Sighs) The tone of his voice.  Just the way—how he said everything. Just the lack of remorse, the lack of horror in his voice. It kind of sent chills down my spine.

    <

    p>
    Fernandez: Now I stand before you convicted of rape. Your honor, you allowed this erroneous trial to happen. You’re supposed to stand for justice. To me, you stand for conviction.

    <

    p>
    ‘Kate’:  I mean I just think he’s a psychopath. What kind of person tries to pin a crime on their own brother?

    <

    p>
    Hogrell: He’s a coward.

    <

    p>
    Jennifer Hogrell told us that testifying in Kate’s trial has helped in her continuing recovery.

    <

    p>
    Hogrell: I got to look at him head-on. He didn’t kill me, he made me so much stronger. And to see his face, it makes me so much stronger.

    <

    p>
    James: In fact, when you came down from taking the stand, you stared right at him.

    <

    p>
    Hogrell: I did. I want him to remember me. Because of what he did, I will live with Darrin’s face in my head every single day for the rest of my life. And I will be damned if he forgets me. Any court date he has, I will be there. Any parole hearing he has, I will be there.

    <

    p>
    As for Kate, she too is recovering, but can’t escape the stark memories of her attack.

    <

    p>
    James: Do you still think about it every night?

    <

    p>
    ‘Kate’: Yeah. I mean, each night I still go to sleep usually with the lights on and the radio playing. I mean I still get really afraid that someone’s gonna think that my guard is down.

    <

    p>
    James: Do you think there will come a day when you can go to sleep with the lights off and the radio off?

    <

    p>
    ‘Kate’: I hope so, but I don’t know that for sure.

    <

    p>
    Wow, pretty powerful stuff.  Worth watching or reading if you get a chance.

    <

    p>

    • not really analogous two what’s going on in LaGuer’s case.

      <

      p>
      There has been a growing realization in the DNA expert community in recent years that while forensic DNA is a powerful and very useful tool, it is not immune from the same kinds of errors any human activity is prone to. That is one of the reasons Romney’s effort to get a purportedly fool proof death penalty through in Massachusetts represented a misplaced faith in scientific certainty. The point is that powerful as DNA evidence is, lab error, contamination and on occasion fraud can never be ruled out. The leading researcher in this field is William Thompson, a professor at UC Irvine who published a must-read article on the subject called Tarnish on the “Gold Standard”: Understanding Recent Problems in Forensic DNA Testing. It appeared in The Champion, the magazine of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

      <

      p>
      In LaGuer’s case, it is very clear to the four reputable DNA experts who have studied the document trail that contamination almost certainly played a role in the DNA results in his case. Their letters are available in full at BenLaGuer.com and have gotten a good deal of play on BMG. Anyone who is interested in this case should definitely check them out.

  3. Ben LaGuer appears to be the victim of a hastily investigated crime and terribly botched defense. In a rush to find and convict someone of this terrible crime Ben LaGuer was railroaded into prison, and now 23 years later he is still there. He could have taken a plea bargain if he was guilty. He could have admitted guilt, and being a model prisoner with his Bachelor’s degree he could have proven his merits to allow his release back into society if he had just rolled over and admitted he was guilty. His conscience will not allow that because he knows he is not. Ben is a hero in the same peer group as the witches of Salem Massachuetts, that would not compromise their principles even to save their own lives. Why no one is talking about this is a tragedy in the realm of the crime he is falsely accused of. We deserve a justice system that takes notice and action of injustices of this nature, rather than cover it up and try to look the other way. Five witnesses were with him at the time of the crime, and another man is reported to have confessed to being the assailant while to a local bartender… twice! If you read this post, get involved, please! This may very well be the greatest failure of our justice system in this century.

Archives