the public defender

The penalty phase of a capital trial is incredibly important because it is when the jurors have to make a decision as to whether or not a person’s life should be taken away from them, their family, and the community. For the defense, it is the chance to present mitigating information about the client that will convince the jurors that his life is worth sparing. In preparation for this part of a capital trial, we know that typically hundreds of interviews are conducted with potential witnesses, thousands of pages of records can be gathered and reviewed, and a dozen or more experts may be consulted as part of the lawyer’s responsibility to construct a “comprehensive and well-documented psycho-social history of the client” that is necessary to create a “persuasive narrative in support of a case for life.” (ABA Guidelines for the Appointment and Performance of Defense Counsel in Death Penalty Cases.) The mitigation component of Mr. Morva’s penalty phase lasted only one day, and it focused on a period of his life that preceded onset of the most significant symptoms of his mental illness. In such a short time period, there is no way that his jurors could have received all of the information required for them to make a fully-informed decision. In fact, a crucial mitigating factor was left out of the evidence presented to jurors charged with the decision whether to impose a death sentence: Mr. Morva’s debilitating mental illness. Mr. Morva suffers from delusional disorder, a psychotic disorder that causes him to experience particular delusions such that he cannot distinguish from reality. These delusions greatly contributed to his commission of the crimes for which he was sentenced to death. This information is critical to the sentencing decision, because it has a significant effect on the assignment of moral culpability. Without it, the jurors understood Mr. Morva to be a person with the capacity to be held fully culpable for crimes. They were told that Mr. Morva had a problematic “attitude towards the world” that was simply a part of his personality. However, the truth is that he was, and is, a severely mentally ill person who committed murder because of his delusional and irrational belief that he had to in order to save his own life. Additionally, we note that, as we understand it, Mr. Morva has yet to receive psychiatric treatment for his mental illness, and the prospects of treatment are promising because one of Mr. Morva’s immediate family members has been successfully treated for a psychotic disorder. As professionals, we have seen first-hand how people with mental illness who encounter the criminal justice system can have their mental health dramatically improved through appropriate treatment. We encourage you, at the very least, to issue a conditional reprieve that requires the provision of appropriate mental health treatment to Mr. Morva before allowing his execution to take place. Successful treatment will both confirm Mr. Morva’s mental illness and address the impetus for his dangerous behavior in this case. We honor the memories and sacrifice of the victims in this case, who were security and law enforcement officers killed while carrying out their respective public safety responsibilities. We do not think this honor is diminished by recognizing the role severe mental illness played in their deaths. Nor do we think that the safety of their colleagues will be compromised by a decision to commute Mr. Morva’s death sentence. In fact, your commitment to improving the ability to identify and treat persons with mental illness who enter the criminal justice system is consistent with intervention in this case and remains the best course for the protection nof public safety individuals and the general public. Governor McAuliffe, we urge you not to let the jury’s ill-informed decision be the final one. You have information they didn’t have and you have the ability to make it right. Please grant clemency to Mr. Morva and commute his sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Thank you for considering our request.

When the only case you won today was illegal use of headphones while driving

When the judge says, “We want everyone to understand that this court takes these types of charges very seriously” 

When the psychologist says the client can participate and assist in his own defense…If you talk loudly enough over his hallucinations

When a deputy asks “so when are you gonna come over to the light side”

“Motion to place defendant in wrist and ankle restraints for the duration of the jury trial”

When the judge says, “I would have dismissed this case if your client showed up today”

when the prosecutor says “I SHOULD be asking for the full time revoked, but instead I’m only gonna ask for most of it”

when a client asks “Should I print out these pictures to bring to court?” for a harassment dissemination of obscene material charge

reason for stop: wide right turn

When the case is dismissed because of the officer’s bad handwriting

“it was only vehicular manslaughter!”

hearing that a private attorney charged $3,000 dollars for an appeal brief based solely on sufficiency of the evidence

when your client indicates he prefers a jury trial because his psychic powers will ensure the jury acquits

when the state trooper says your client should be jailed because he showed “a complete lack of disrespect for the law”

when the client says, “Nah, I need an attorney on that charge, not a public defender”