Death Sentence!

Death Sentence!

In this episode of Bloody Angola, Woody Overton and Jim Chapman tell you some stories you will have to hear to believe regarding inmate of Louisiana State Penitentiary who were sentenced to DEATH ROW getting exonerated after DNA evidence or other substantiating evidence cleared them of their crime and saved them from getting the needle.#DeathSentence #DNA #InnocenceProject #BloodyAngola #PodcastFULL TRANSCRIPTJim: Hey, everyone. And welcome back to another edition of Bloody-
Woody: -Angola.
Jim: A podcast 142 years in the making.
Woody: The complete story of America's bloodiest prison.
Jim: And I'm Jim Chapman.
Woody: And I'm Woody Overton.
Jim: And we're going back to our roots, Woody Overton.
Woody: Right back inside the wire.
Jim: Back inside the wire. Just when you thought we got out. Just coming back here.
Woody: Yep. [crosstalk] They made me come back in.
Jim: That's right. Look, we talk a lot on this show about the advancement, especially DNA, something you've worked with in the past many times.
Woody: Yeah. This is a huge testament to DNA. When I started, it was really coming in its own. Now it's so much more advanced. I remember putting rushes on murder cases, and it taken six months to get the results back.
Jim: That's crazy. Even back, we talked about Sean Vincent Gillis, and that was really probably one of the first times they were ever able to really rush something to the point where it really helped because you had to get that serial killer off the street.
Woody: Derrick Todd Lee too. Still, even the rush back then took a long time. Not like it is now.
Jim: Right.
Woody: You know what? I'm totally for it. And let me do this real quick. I want to give a shout out to all our patrons. We love and appreciate each and every one of y'all. We love all you listeners, and bloody shooting to the top of the charts. It's because y'all are listening, liking and sharing. Please continue to do so. And we love y'all very much. Back to the DNA, it's just come leaps and bounds that continue to change every day. We always tell you Bloody Angola is going to be different, and this is different. You would think, oh, hard ass like me, lock everybody up, I don't believe in that. I believe if you're innocent you're innocent.
Jim: If you're guilty, lock them up.
Woody: If you're guilty, you- [crosstalk]
Jim: Don't wait [crosstalk]
Woody: [crosstalk] -you'll pay hella jail.
Jim: [laughs] Hella jail, that's right. We did want to preface this episode with some of these guys were exonerated from DNA. Some of them, it was other reasons. And we're going to get into that. The intriguing thing about today's episode is many of these guys that we're going to tell you about were actually serving in death row. They've been sentenced to death.
Woody: Today, we're going to be talking about people or convicts who were exonerated and released from Bloody Angola.
Jim: Yes. We want to kind of start this off. I'm just going to tell you about the Innocence Project. The Innocence Project was founded in 1992 by Barry Scheck, y'all, familiar with him through OJ. It was basically formed to assist incarcerated individuals who could be proven innocent, primarily through DNA testing. Although sometimes they find so many holes in a case, they'll pick up a case where there's so many problems that they take that case on and look for exonerations in those cases. The average prison sentence before they'll take on a case is 14 years before their exoneration or release. And so, it's a process, even with those guys, but we're going to them to it.
Woody: They don't just take anybody, right?
Jim: Yeah.
Woody: One of the ones I can tell you about if-- ready to get started?
Jim: I'm ready.
Woody: Is John Thompson. John Thompson was from Orleans Parish. I'll just read you some of the facts of the case, some of the highlights, and what ultimately ended up happening. Shortly after midnight on December 6th, 1984, Raymond Liuzza was shot several times in the course of an armed robbery just around the corner from his New Orleans, Louisiana apartment. When the cops arrived, they found Liuzza laying on the ground, but he was still conscious. He told them he was robbed and shot by an African American male and then took him to hospital and he died. On December 8th, responded to tip, the police arrested two men in connection with the crime. John Thompson and Kevin Freeman. Photos of the two men were published in the New Orleans Times-Picayune, and soon afterwards, police received a call from a family that had been carjacked several months earlier, claiming that Thompson looked like the person who had robbed them. Thompson was charged with the murder. Meanwhile, Freeman agreed to testify against Thompson in the murder trial, and in return, prosecutors charged him only with being an accessory to the murder. He was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison. We're talking about Freeman, y'all.
The world-famous New Orleans district attorney, Harry Connick, Sr,, not Junior, that's his son, the singer and actor, decided to try Thompson for the carjacking case first, knowing that a conviction could be used against him in the murder trial. Based primarily on the eyewitness testimony of the three carjacking victims, all of whom were minors, Thompson was convicted on April 4, 1985, and sentenced to 49 years in prison. That is for the carjacking. Y'all, always told you that eyewitness testimony is the worst testimony there is, but doesn't mean it's not true.
At his murder trial, held shortly thereafter, the prosecution demonstrated that Thompson had at one time been in possession of both the murder weapon and a ring taken from Liuzza’s finger. Thompson decided not to testify in his own defense because if he did, his felony carjacking charge would have been admissible to the jury. As a result, he was unable to tell the jury that Freeman had sold him the murder weapon and the ring. Freeman, the main witness for the prosecution, claimed that he and Thompson had robbed Liuzza together and that Thompson had shot him. This testimony was contradicted by the statements of eyewitnesses who claimed to have seen only one man running from the scene of the crime. Richard Perkins, who had originally called in the tip implicating Thompson and Freeman, also testified for the prosecution, claiming that he had heard Thompson make incriminating remarks. Thompson was found guilty and sentenced to death on May 8th, 1985.
Fast forward a whole bunch of years, y'all, and events took a dramatic turn in April 1999, 30 days before scheduled execution, an investigator discovered that there was a blood stain from the robber on the clothing of one of the carjacking victims and that this evidence had never been disclosed to the defense. It's Brady, y'all. If they had it, they got to give it up. The prosecutor had ordered testing to determine the blood type of the stain, and in fact, they had rushed the test. But when the blood type was determined-- I guess this was before DNA. Blood type was determined and was different from Thompson's. They concealed it. Defense attorneys then obtained an affidavit Michael Rielhmann, a former district attorney, who said that five years earlier, in 1994, Gerry Deegan, one of Thompson's prosecutors, admitted on his deathbed that the blood evidence was intentionally suppressed and that he left a report about it on the desk of James Williams, the lead prosecutor. Williams denied ever seeing the report. Defense attorneys also learned that Perkins, the witness who testified that Thompson had admitted the murder, had received $15,000 from the Liuzza family as a reward. When this evidence was presented to the trial judge, he granted a stay of execution and dismissed Thompson’s carjacking conviction, but he denied Thompson’s motion for a new trial on the Liuzza murder. In 2001, however, he reduced Thompson’s death sentence to life in prison without parole.
Jim: Wow.
Woody: Pretty crazy, right?
Jim: Very crazy.
Woody: In July of 2002, the Louisiana Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal overturned Thompson’s murder conviction and remanded the case for retrial, ruling that the false robbery conviction obtained by deliberate government misconduct had deprived Thompson of his constitutional right to testify on his own behalf at the murder trial. Y'all, I'm not against that. I mean, give him a new trial, if it was messed up. At the second trial, Thompson was able to explain that he purchased the murder weapon from Freeman, and the defense called several new witnesses who claimed to have seen only one man fleeing the scene of the murder. They said that the man did not look like Thompson, but did resemble Freeman who, in the meantime, had been killed in a shootout with a security guard. On May 8, 2003, a jury acquitted Thompson after deliberating for 35 minutes, and he was released from prison the same day. Y'all, 35 minutes is for conviction? That's outstanding. But for exoneration, I mean, that's unbelievable. It normally takes hours--[crosstalk]
Jim: They were pretty convinced.
Woody: Yeah, they want to make sure. In 2008, Thompson won a $14 million civil suit against the District Attorney’s Office. That judgment was reversed by the US Supreme Court in March 2011 on the grounds that the misconduct in the case was not the result of a deliberate policy or systematic indifference by the New Orleans DA's Office. He got $330,000 in state compensation. But you know what? That's a long time to be on death row, and you didn't do it.
Jim: He's a good example of someone that it wasn't necessarily DNA evidence that exonerated him, but it was the facts of the case.
Woody: I have heard this case before, and actually, I think it's pretty well documented-
Jim: Thank you.
Woody:

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The Escape of Joe Williams

The Escape of Joe Williams

In this episode of "Bloody Angola," we share Joe Williams' daring escape from Angola prison, detailing his evasion for four days fueled by mushroom tea. Timestamps:08:17 A Desperate Decision15:54 Early Life and Upbringing25:20 Revisiting Clemency27:14 Recent News: Drug Trafficking Conspiracy30:06 Smuggling Contraband: Washington Parish JailSponsors:Badlands RanchAir-Dried Nutritious Dog Food Superfood Complete contains some of the healthiest foods on Earth — humanely raised beef, nutrient-dense organ meat, omega-packed salmon, and gut-healthy vegetables. And of course, a variety of our favorite superfoods, chosen to help support your dog’s smooth digestion, healthy energy level, and easy-moving joints. These ingredients are cooked responsibly at low temperatures and air-dried for maximum nutrition. Superfood Complete contains no meat meal, byproduct, or preservatives known to cause health issues in many dogs — it’s all of the good stuff your dog needs to thrive, with none of the bad.Check out the video below!https://www.badlandsfood.com/BloodyAngolaOur Sponsors:* Go to badlandsfood.com/BLOODYANGOLA to learn how you can see incredible changes in your dog’s health!Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

9 Maj 202440min

Part 2 | The Deathmen

Part 2 | The Deathmen

In this episode we include 'The Deathmen" series and tell you unknown facts regarding Louisiana's executioners including "The hangman of New Orleans" Harry Meyer and Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola executioners Grady Jarrett and Sam Jones.Timestamps:02:24 Louisiana's First Legal Execution04:28 The Hangman of New Orleans11:42 Transition to the Electric Chair19:12 The Search for a New Executioner20:41 Sam Jones: The New Executioner24:03 Reflection on Historical Execution Methods#Podcast #prison #crime #bloodyangolaSpecial Listener Deals!Badlands Ranch:Go watch this 20 Minute Video presented by Katherine Heigl and learn some amazing tips on the health of your dog.Click Here to watch now!Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

2 Maj 202433min

"C-Murder Killed My Brother" | George Thomas, No Limit & Corey Miller

"C-Murder Killed My Brother" | George Thomas, No Limit & Corey Miller

George Thomas shares his family story of dealing with the tragic death of his brother Steve Thomas at the hands of rap star and No Limit Records recording artist Corey Miller also known as C-Murder, the brother of founder Master P.George goes into detail with Woody Overton and Jim Chapman on Bloody Angola Podcast regarding the case itself, responds to calls from Kim Kardashian to "Free C-Murder" and the impact the case has had on his entire family.Timestamps02:15 Diverse Crime Stories03:42 Personal Backgrounds and Music Influence05:07 Upbringing in New Orleans06:54 Temptation of Street Life08:51 Military Influence10:20 Life in Leavenworth15:39 Shocking News of Brother's Murder18:16 Involvement of C-Murder20:48 Brother's Love for Rap Battles22:13 Fond Memories of Brother32:46 Concealed Information and Media Control35:53 Emotions in Courtroom35:56 Uncovering the Truth38:32 The Wine Flowers Incident39:31 The Emotional Testimony40:09 Dealing with Threats40:53 Unveiling the Industry42:06 Facing Public Scrutiny46:32 Reflections on Remorse46:56 Remembering the Victim52:39 Seeking Justice54:15 Seeking the Truth55:10 Respecting Intentions56:30 Unexpected Apologies59:07 Sharing the Story59:57 Choosing Redemption1:00:41 Making Life Choices1:03:14 Making a Difference1:03:55 Sharing Personal Journeys1:05:22 Seeking Peace1:08:45 Speaking Hard Truths#kimkardashian #cmurder #nolimitrecords #stevethomas #rap #podcast #masterp #deathrow #bloodyangolaAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

25 Apr 20241h 11min

Part One | The Deathmen

Part One | The Deathmen

In this episode of Bloody Angola Podcast, we explore the dark history of executioners throughout civilizations, from their origins to their roles under tribal leaders and monarchs. Woody and Jim delve into the lives of infamous executioners like Derek and John Crosland, revealing chilling details of their deeds. Various methods of execution over the centuries are discussed, including the guillotine's introduction by Dr. Joseph Guillotine, transforming the landscape and speed of executions.01:30 Introduction03:45 Origins of Executioners12:48 Unique Identification Methods19:27 Love in the DungeonAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

11 Apr 202430min

The Legend of Lead Belly

The Legend of Lead Belly

In this episode, we explore the life of Lead Belly, a prominent blues singer originating from the infamous Bloody Angola prison. Spanning the 1930s, we witness Lead Belly's turbulent journey from incarceration to musical stardom, showcasing his exceptional 12-string guitar skills and prestigious performances at locales like Carnegie Hall and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. We delve into the harsh realities of life in Bloody Angola during the Great Depression, shedding light on inmate challenges and the vital role of correctional officers in maintaining order. Additionally, we touch upon the evolving landscape of law enforcement, the complexities detectives encounter, and the significance of adequate funding for police departments. Timestamps0:53 Lead Belly's Story Begins14:23 Lead Belly's Violent Altercations15:53 Lead Belly's Murder Conviction20:58 Lead Belly's Recording Opportunity21:57Lead Belly's Release and Musical Success26:14 Lead Belly's Hit Song30:24 Reflections on Lead Belly's Legacy36:51 Challenges Faced by Correctional Officers42:45 Law Enforcement Challenges44:00 Investigative PrioritizationAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

4 Apr 202449min

Horror Show

Horror Show

Woody and Jim into the history of the electric chair, discussing various executions that took place in the past. William Kemmler's execution in New York in 1890 marked the first time the electric chair was used, aiming to replace the gruesome public hangings of the time. The podcast highlights the mishaps that occurred during electrocutions, such as William Taylor's legs ripping off during the process. It also explores how Louisiana transitioned from hangings to using the electric chair in 1940 and eventually to lethal injection in 1991.Additionally, we want to acknowledge the support of Lori Johnson, a Louisiana community figure participating in a fundraising event for the Big Buddy Program. If you would like contribute to the cause and show support for Lori, we provide her specific link below.https://dancingforbigbuddy.com/dancer/lori-johnson/?fbclid=IwAR0aHVAqaX_u_kCMjAn4mw_7E1eY5MXNUifV8mpKfHEdkT2VCmbJaEtHgigTimestamps0:03:57 The History of the Electric Chair0:06:49 Public Executions and the Shift to Electric Chair0:14:19 Transition to Electric Chair in Louisiana0:15:31 Introduction of Portable Electric Chair in Louisiana0:19:44 Increase in Louisiana Executions via Electric Chair0:28:05 History of Executioners in the US and Bloody Angola0:29:30 Exploring Alternate Forms of Execution0:33:11 Reflections on the Justice System and Executions0:35:22 Shout-Out to Lori Johnson's Fundraiser0:37:24 Wrapping Up and Rodeo PlansAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

21 Mars 202441min

Part 2 | The Richest Man In Bloody Angola: Wilbert Rideau

Part 2 | The Richest Man In Bloody Angola: Wilbert Rideau

In this Part 2 we wraps up this series "The Richest Man in Bloody Angola" .In this episode, we dive into the story of Wilbert Rideau, a man who spent 44 years in prison for a crime he committed in 1961. We explore his journey from a young man involved in a tragic incident to his time in prison, including solitary confinement and his reflections on regret and survival. We discuss his various trials, legal battles, and ultimately his release after being found guilty of manslaughter in his fourth trial. Wilbert's transformation during his time in prison, his accomplishments as a journalist, filmmaker, and author post-release, and the challenges he faced reintegrating into society are all highlighted. We also touch on the perspectives of the victims' families and the complexities of forgiveness and redemption. The episode explores the question of rehabilitation and whether Wilbert Rideau, now a successful author and consultant, has truly changed from the person he was in 1961. Ultimately, we reflect on Wilbert Rideau's journey and the contrasting feelings of justice, forgiveness, and the ongoing impact of his release.Timestamps:0:01:51 Facing Regrets and Solitary Confinement0:03:37 Hope in Solitude0:06:30 The Hope of Clemency0:09:39 Linda LaBranche's Support0:13:55 Legal Dream Team with Johnny Cochran0:16:47 Judicial Rollercoaster0:21:33 Opening Statements of Fourth Trial0:26:01 Conclusion of Fourth Trial0:28:44 Rideau's Release and Community Divide0:37:00 Concerns and Plans Post-Prison0:39:14 Wilbert Rideau's Biographical Success0:41:58 The Richest Man in Bloody AngolaAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

14 Mars 202444min

Part 1 | The Richest Man In Bloody Angola: Wilbert Rideau

Part 1 | The Richest Man In Bloody Angola: Wilbert Rideau

In this episode of Bloody Angola, Jim Chapman delves into the story of Wilbert Rideau, a prisoner with a remarkable journey. Rideau achieved significant accomplishments behind bars, winning prestigious journalism awards and making substantial reforms within the Angola prison. Chapman vividly describes Rideau's background, including his upbringing in Louisiana and his involvement in a fateful armed bank robbery in 1961. The detailed account of the robbery and its consequences on Rideau's life are presented, highlighting the tragic events that unfolded that night.Chapman delves into Rideau's multiple trials, each resulting in a first-degree murder conviction and a death sentence. Despite Rideau's claims of panic and lack of premeditation, the courts repeatedly found him guilty. The emotional impact on the victims, especially Dora McCain, a surviving bank teller, is powerfully portrayed through their statements during Rideau's clemency hearings. The tension between Rideau's rehabilitation and the severity of his crime is a central theme throughout the episode.The episode captures the complex emotions and moral dilemmas surrounding Rideau's case, including insights from journalists, D.A., and Rideau's mother. Despite his outstanding achievements in journalism and documentary filmmaking while in prison, Rideau faces the ongoing challenge of seeking clemency and ultimate release. The episode ends with a hint of a forthcoming episode, promising a continuation of Rideau's story and the surprising turns it takes. Throughout the episode, Chapman's narrative style immerses the listeners in the compelling and controversial story of Wilbert Rideau and the Angola prison.Timestamps:0:03:20 Rideau's Accomplishments and Reforms0:04:53 Recognition and Fame0:05:13 Wilbert Rideau's Upbringing0:06:50 The Bank Robbery0:11:54 The Bank Robbery - Confrontation0:14:30 The Bank Robbery - Panic Sets In0:20:32 Publicity Surrounding Rideau's Case0:23:16 Legal Battles and Appeals0:26:47 Interview Reflection on the Crime0:33:54 Rideau's Notable Achievements0:38:19 Rideau as Editor of Angola0:41:04 Rideau's Clemency Hearing0:45:29 Public Response to Rideau's Clemency0:47:11 Clemency Decision0:50:41 Rideau's Success in PrisonAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

7 Mars 202457min

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