During Gardner’s most formative years, from birth until he was hospitalized in the State Hospital at age 11, the household in which he lived was replete with neglect, physical violence, sexual abuse, drug abuse and criminality.Here is some of the evidence presented to the federal court by Gardner’s appellate attorneys: The federal court held an extensive evidentiary hearing in which Gardner’s new counsel presented a wide range of mitigating evidence which had never been heard in the state court because Gardner’s trial counsel failed to pursue any mitigation investigation and because, on appeal, the state court denied any funding. Then Gardner pursued his challenge in federal court, where he was appointed counsel and granted funding for experts and investigators. The State appealed and the Utah Supreme Court reversed the grant of a new penalty hearing, finding that Gardner’s attorneys (lacking any funding) had not shown what favorable evidence could have been presented. Accordingly, Judge Uno ordered a new sentencing hearing. Utah State Judge Uno concluded that Gardner’s trial lawyer had provided ineffective assistance of counsel by failing to investigate and present mitigation evidence to the sentencing jury. Funding was denied because, at that time in Utah, Gardner did not have a statutory right to the appointment of a lawyer to help him with his appeal and so was not entitled to state-compensated experts and investigators. That appeals lawyer requested funding to investigate the case and hire expert witness. On appeal in state court, a lawyer representing Gardner without charge conducted an evidentiary hearing to demonstrate that Gardner’s trial counsel had failed to investigate and present mitigating evidence. The State of Utah would not be gearing up to kill Gardner. If he had, the result would have been different. Gardner’s trial counsel failed to do a mitigation investigation in this case and present that information to the jury. See the declarations of original jurors in Ronnie Lee Gardner’s Case here. If they had, Gardner would not have received the death penalty. The trial jury in this case never heard the extensive evidence of Gardner’s deprived and abusive childhood, nor of his brain damage. The execution of Ronnie Lee Gardner, if carried out, would be a tragic miscarriage of justice. UTAHNS FOR ALTERNATIVES TO THE DEATH PENALTY DECLARES THE PENDING EXECUTION OF RONNIE LEE GARDNER: “NOT JUST, NOT FAIR” Utahns for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
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