Theme Blog #7- Todd Willingham- Is He Guilty or Innocent?

Theme Blog #7

Todd Willingham: is he guilty or innocent, why or why not??

            Being that I moved to Texas last year, and had not heard about this in the news, I had some reading to do about the case.  However, I found an article that was extremely informative about the case, but was impartial on their views, just gave me the information and was not biased. 

            When I read about the case, I was shocked by what I read.  Probably due to the fact that my husband is a police officer, my theory is, if the evidence shows guilty, the man or woman is guilty.  Our science has come so far (I am a nursing student), that there is little room for error.  Notice I say little room for error, because NOBODY is perfect, although science has made it so that they can bring matches to perfection in science.

            From reading two articles, the following comment stood out to me:

            Dec. 9, 2004: The Chicago Tribune publishes its investigation of the case. In addition to examining all the evidence, the newspaper asks fire scientists from around the country to review the evidence. All find that the original investigation relied on indicators of arson that have since been disproved. The conclusion: The fire might well have been an accident (Chicago Tribune, 2011).

            When I look at this statement, fact is fact, when I see the word MIGHT, I do not believe that Todd Willingham was innocent, I fully believe he was guilty and deserved the punishment that the court thought was required.  “Someone had poured liquid accelerant throughout the children’s room, even under their beds, then poured some more along the adjoining hallway and out the front door, creating a “fire barrier” that prevented anyone from escaping” (Grann, 2009).  From reading the articles that were available and were without bias, I came to my own conclusion that Mr. Willingham was the only person home at the time that was capable of setting the fire, it was not an electrical fire, and there were things that happened that show that it was set on purpose and the intention was to harm people.  “A prosecutor later suggested, the refrigerator in the kitchen had been moved to block the back-door exit. The house, in short, had been deliberately transformed into a death trap” (Grann, 2009).  The older daughter would not been able to move the fridge to block the door, and the mom was not home at the time the fire was set. 

            People need to take responsibility for their own actions, and Mr. Willingham was put to death as a result of his actions.  Scientific evidence can be proven, and you cannot fight with evidence!

Works Cited

"A Timeline of the Cameron Todd Willingham Case." Chicago Tribune [Chicago] 25 07 2011, n. pag. Web.     8 May. 2012. <http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-06-25/news/ct-met-perry-execution-2-20110625_1_fire-investigation-willingham-home-texas-forensic-science-commission>.

Grann, David. "Trial By Fire." New Yorker. 07 09 2009: n. page. Web. 8 May. 2012.

      <http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/09/07/090907fa_fact_grann?currentPage=all>.