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The University of Memphis Law Review Symposium
Cultural Competency and the Death Penalty
featuring Jason Baldwin of the West Memphis Three
March 29–30, 2012
Wade Auditorium
The University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law
Online registration available here.
In the sentencing phase of a death penalty trial, the life story of the defendant
is presented to a jury. Some stories are easier to tell than others because they have
familiar themes — a broken home, deficient education, drug use. Others can be more
complex, necessitating a new method of representation: cultural competence.
This form of inter-disciplinary representation digs deeper, investigating the sociological
relationship between the defendant and the crime. The representation presents the
jury with a thorough explanation of the defendant's actions. As a result, the jurors
are less likely to rely on misleading stereotypes in their sentencing decision.
This special symposium will analyze well-known stories such as the West Memphis Three
and Guantanamo. Speakers will also address timely cases involving foreign nationals,
intellectual disability, jury selection, gangs, and the prosecutor's perspective.
There will also be a special Shelby County panel discussion of the issue.
Open to the public. Online registration available now.
Registration: $125 for attendees seeking CLE credit; $40 for attendees not seeking
CLE credit; free for students, professors, university staff, and government employees. Program attendees will be eligible for 6.25 hours of CLE credit. Breakfast, lunch,
and refreshments for the duration will be provided.
A copy of the agenda is available here and below.
For more information please contact:
Isaac Kimes
Symposium Editor, The University of Memphis Law Review
E-mail: iukimes@memphis.edu
Telephone: (901) 300-6417
Click here for online registration.
Symposium Edition
A Symposium Edition of the University of Memphis Law Review will be dedicated to Cultural Competency and the Death Penalty in conjunction with
this event. If you would like to subscribe to the University of Memphis Law Review or receive the Symposium Edition, please contact the Law Review Business Editor.
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Symposium Agenda
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| Thursday, March 29, 2012 |
| 5:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. |
Symposium Reception (invitation only)
Flight Restaurant Loft Space, 39 South Main St. Memphis, TN 38103
The Symposium Reception will thank the authors and panelists for their participation.
Heavy hors d'oeuvres, wine, and beer will be served. There will also be a short performance
by a Memphis musician.
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| 8:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. |
Symposium Party (open to the public)
The Brass Door, 152 Madison Ave., Memphis, TN 38103
The Brass Door is an Irish pub. The party will take place in the restaurant's lower
level, The Cavern. DJ lil' Red Radio and DJ Slav will be spinning vinyl. Free drinks
and appetizers while supplies last.
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| Friday, March 30, 2012 |
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Wade Auditorium, The University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law, 1 N.
Front. St., Memphis, TN 38103
Visit www.memphis.edu/lawreview/symposium.php to register.
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| 8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. |
Sign-in and Breakfast
Lobby of The University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law
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| 9:00 a.m. - 9:15 a.m. |
Opening Remarks
Dean Kevin H. Smith, The University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law
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| 9:15 a.m. - 9:55 a.m. |
Capital Punishment, Cultural Competency, and Litigating Intellectual Disability
Jeffrey Usman, Assistant Professor of Law, Belmont Law School
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| 10:00 a.m. - 10:40 a.m. |
Challenges and Opportunities in Bringing the Lessons of Cultural Competence to Bear
on Capital Jury Selection
Bidish J. Sarma, Deputy Director of the Capital Appeals Project in New Orleans, Louisiana
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| 10:40 a.m. - 10:50 a.m. |
Break |
| 10:50 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. |
Capital Prejudice
J. Richard Broughton, Assistant Professor of Law, University of Detroit Mercy School
of Law, former Capital Case Unity lawyer at the United States Department of Justice,
Washington, D.C., and former Assistant Attorney General of Texas for Capital Litigation
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| 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. |
Lunch
Student Lounge
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| 12:30 p.m. - 1:10 p.m. |
Developing the Life Histories of Foreign National Capital Clients
Danalynn Recer, Executive Director of Gulf Region Advocacy Center, Houston, Texas
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| 1:15 p.m. - 2:05 p.m. |
Panel Discussion
Moderator: Judge John T. Fowlkes, Shelby County Criminal Court
Panelists: Judge James C. Beasley, Shelby County Criminal Court; Shelby County District
Attorney General Amy Weirich; and Gerald Skahan, Shelby County Public Defender Capital
Defense Coordinator
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| 2:05 p.m. - 2:15 p.m. |
Break |
| 2:15 p.m. - 2:55 p.m. |
Torture and Culture in Guantanamo's Capital Cases
Scharlette Holdman, Executive Director of the Center for Capital Assistance
Col. Jon Jackson (not appearing), military trial lawyer and defense attorney of 9/11
suspects
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| 3:00 p.m. - 3:40 p.m. |
Breaking the Frame: Responding to Gang Stereotypes in Capital Cases
Bradley MacLean, Tennessee Post-Conviction Defender and Vanderbilt Law School adjunct
professor
John Hagedorn, Professor of Criminology, Law, and Justice, University of Illinois-Chicago
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| 3:40 p.m. - 3:50 p.m. |
Break |
| 3:50 p.m. - 4:50 p.m. |
Satanic Panic and Defending the "West Memphis Three"
Judge Dan Stidham, defense attorney for Jessie Misskelley and now Greene County District
Court Judge (Arkansas)
Jason Baldwin of the West Memphis Three
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| 4:50 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. |
Closing Remarks |
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