Fight for Freedom & Life of Michael E. Thompson

Michael E. Thompson is an innocent man that the State of Alabama SHOULD NOT execute on March 13th, 2003 or any other day. There are numerous issues in Michael's case that have been pushed aside or never taken into consideration. All these things listed below are reasons that Michael Thompson SHOULD NOT be executed.

Issues:

Confession was obtained after 36 hours of interrogation by promises and threats made by law enforcement a Federal Judge ruled the confession involuntary and then wrongly applied AEDPA. (petition filed in 1994, AEDPA became law in 1996)

Confession was obtained after police told Michael that Shirley Franklin, his live-in girlfriend, could be placed at the scene of the crime. When Michael asked to see her, she was brought in immediately in handcuffs, crying and begging him to save her life. Michael was promised that she would be let go if he confessed. After Michael confessed, Shirley was let go and paid the reward money. She then broke off the relationship.

Shirley Franklins criminal history was NOT allowed at trial.

To this day Shirley Franklin maintains she was wearing a wire. That recording has never been turned over or found.

Eye witness testimony from the Majik Mart Jack Lee Roberts under hypnosis described a white man 6", 200 220 lbs; long brown wavy hair, scar 6" long in left corner of forehead, large Adams apple, bad acne problem, mustache. This was not turned over to the defense at trial and the prosecution did not call him. Michael is 59" (if that tall) has black straight hair and has never had an acne problem nor does he have a scar on his forehead. At the time he did not have a mustache. Mr. Roberts was in the store at 10 minutes till 2. Mrs. Gray was reported missing at 2AM.

Court appointed attorneys pled Michael guilty to capital murder in opening statements. They had him testify at the guilt phase and did more to convict him than the prosecutors. His current attorneys state "Counsel selected and pursued a "strategy" that they knew was meritless and that no professionally competent lawyer would have considered reasonable. Even though they had a viable defense to capital murder."

To this day Michael maintains his innocence of the robbery, kidnapping and murder of Mrs. Maisie Gray. He admits that he was an accessory AFTER the crime. He knows what happened that night and to this day the truth has not been told. The State of Alabama is not interested in the truth. Michael did NOT tell the truth at trial because his own attorneys told him the confession "had killed him". He was filled with despair and hurt over Shirley's leaving him, and wanted only to "take her with him".

Sentencing Hearing was held out of the presence of the jurors.

One of the jurors was also the clerk of the court and therefore knew the judge and prosecutor and had access to the case before and during the trial.