Texas death row inmate denied retrial despite judge-prosecutor affair

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Judge Verla Sue Holland and, inset, condemned man Charles Dean Hood.

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/execution-delay-over-judge-and-lawyer-affair/2008/09/09/1220857516776.html

Death row inmate denied retrial despite judge-prosecutor affair

http://rawstory.com/news/afp/Death_row_inmate_denied_retrial_des_09162009.html

A death row inmate in Texas does not deserve a new trial even though the judge in his case was having an affair with the prosecutor, a state appeals court ruled Wednesday.

Charles Dean Hood was granted a last-minute reprieve in June 2008 when a former district attorney came forward to confirm long-rumored reports of the affair. The judge and prosecutor later admitted to the secret affair under oath.

In a 6-3 opinion, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals denied Hood's request on the basis that his defense team did not raise the issue in their initial appeal despite the fact that they were aware of the rumors.

"Accordingly, the application is dismissed as an abuse of the writ," the court ruled.