Joe Freeman Britt: Difference between revisions
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Britt earned his law degree from [[Stetson University College of Law]] in Florida in 1963.<ref>http://www.nytimes.com/1985/12/25/us/prosecutor-wins-death-sentences.html</ref> He lives in [[Lumberton, North Carolina]].<ref>http://www.lawyer.com/joe-f-britt.html</ref> |
Britt earned his law degree from [[Stetson University College of Law]] in Florida in 1963.<ref>http://www.nytimes.com/1985/12/25/us/prosecutor-wins-death-sentences.html</ref> He lives in [[Lumberton, North Carolina]].<ref>http://www.lawyer.com/joe-f-britt.html</ref> |
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==Judicial Election and Opponent's Murder== |
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In 1988, the [[North Carolina General Assembly]] created a new Superior Court Judgeship in [[Robeson County, North Carolina|Robeson County]]. Britt was the first to announce his candidacy. Seeing an opportunity to be the first Native American superior court judge in North Carolina, [[Lumbee]] civil rights activist [[Julian Pierce]] resigned from his position as director of Lumbee River Legal Services and entered the race as Britt's opponent.<ref name=Julian>{{cite web | title= "Julian Pierce '76 An attorney who was "for the people"" |date = 2006-02-10 | url=http://web.archive.org/web/20040407115048/http://www.nccu.edu/law/alumni/2003OfCounsel.pdf | accessdate = 2007-05-31}}</ref> |
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On March 26, 1988, just a few weeks before the election, Pierce's body was found in his home with [[shotgun]] wounds to his head, chest, and stomach. Though local law enforcement claimed they had located the murderer, who committed suicide prior to an arrest or trial taking place, the reasons for the murder continue to be debated.<ref>http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/03/20/3718640/murdered-or-assassinated-lumbee.html</ref> In the aftermath, Britt was automatically declared the winner of the [[primary election]]. However, some reporters and campaign workers counted the votes and determined that Pierce actually won the vote posthumously, 10,787 to 8,231.<ref name=Julian /> |
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==References== |
==References== |
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Revision as of 06:07, 4 September 2014
Joe Freeman Britt is an American attorney and judge who developed a national reputation as a tough prosecutor, and for successfully pursuing a large number of death penalty convictions.[1] The Guinness Book of World Records lists him as the "deadliest prosecutor in America", with 47 death row convictions to his name as of 1988.[2]
Among the cases he prosecuted were those of Leon Brown and Henry Lee McCollum, African American half-brothers with low IQs who were convicted in North Carolina of the 1983 rape and murder of 11-year-old Sabrina Buie. Their convictions, which rested heavily on coerced confessions they later recanted, were overturned after DNA evidence implicated Roscoe Artis in the crime, and both were released after 30 years in prison.[3][4]Even in light of scientific evidence Britt refused to acknowledge the mens' innocence.[5]
Britt earned his law degree from Stetson University College of Law in Florida in 1963.[6] He lives in Lumberton, North Carolina.[7]
Judicial Election and Opponent's Murder
In 1988, the North Carolina General Assembly created a new Superior Court Judgeship in Robeson County. Britt was the first to announce his candidacy. Seeing an opportunity to be the first Native American superior court judge in North Carolina, Lumbee civil rights activist Julian Pierce resigned from his position as director of Lumbee River Legal Services and entered the race as Britt's opponent.[8]
On March 26, 1988, just a few weeks before the election, Pierce's body was found in his home with shotgun wounds to his head, chest, and stomach. Though local law enforcement claimed they had located the murderer, who committed suicide prior to an arrest or trial taking place, the reasons for the murder continue to be debated.[9] In the aftermath, Britt was automatically declared the winner of the primary election. However, some reporters and campaign workers counted the votes and determined that Pierce actually won the vote posthumously, 10,787 to 8,231.[8]
References
- ^ "42 Killers Sentenced to Die : Tenacious North Carolina Prosecutor Builds His Life on Death". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
- ^ Brower, Montgomery (18 April 1988). "The Murder of Julian Pierce Provokes Grief and Grievances in Troubled Robeson County". People. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
- ^ "Brothers Convicted in 1983 North Carolina Murder Are Freed After DNA Tests". New York Times. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
- ^ http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/09/03/judge-overturns-north-carolina-men-conviction-in-183-murder-case/
- ^ "Brothers Convicted in 1983 North Carolina Murder Are Freed After DNA Tests". New York Times. Retrieved 2 September 2014.
- ^ http://www.nytimes.com/1985/12/25/us/prosecutor-wins-death-sentences.html
- ^ http://www.lawyer.com/joe-f-britt.html
- ^ a b ""Julian Pierce '76 An attorney who was "for the people""" (PDF). 2006-02-10. Retrieved 2007-05-31.
- ^ http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/03/20/3718640/murdered-or-assassinated-lumbee.html