Brit Death Row Witnesses Were 'Threatened'

Lawyers for a British grandmother on death row in Texas claim prosecutors coerced or blackmailed witnesses into giving false evidence at her trial.

Linda Carty was convicted of the murder of her neighbour Joana Rodriguez and the abduction of her four-day-old son in 2001 and sentenced to death.

British-based human rights organisation Reprieve has unearthed new evidence which alleges that key witness Christopher Robinson, who claimed to have seen Carty kill Ms Rodriguez, has now admitted that he lied.

Mr Robinson, in a September 2014 affidavit, said the Texan district attorneys "threatened and intimidated" him into identifying her as the murderer, Reprieve said, and "[told] me I would get the death penalty myself if Linda Carty did not get the death penalty".

Other witnesses have also admitted they were "blackmailed" by prosecutors and lied or omitted evidence as a result.

Lawyers for the 56-year-old, who is originally from the British Virgin Islands but had lived in Houston for nearly 20 years prior to her conviction, argue that prosecutors arranged for a deal with a co-defendant which was never disclosed to her defence team and that four jurors now say they would either have acquitted her or not given her a death sentence.

Charles Mathis, a former Drugs Enforcement Agency (DEA) officer who was Carty's "handler" while she worked as an informer, has said the district attorneys threatened to reveal an invented affair if he did not testify against her.

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals is now considering the evidence.

Celia Ouellette, a lawyer at Reprieve, said: "This is a wonderful day for Linda - and for justice.

"That a prosecutor can threaten witnesses to lie under oath and testify against a woman, who ends up being convicted of murder and sentenced to death as a direct result, is truly devastating.

"We look forward to giving Linda a day in court that is not rigged against her from the start."