Justice pulls out of death penalty case after radio remarks

FILE: Brown was one of five inmates charged with first-degree murder in the killing of a prison guard during a 1999 escape attempt at Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola.(Pixabay photo)

NEW ORLEANS — A Louisiana Supreme Court justice has disqualified himself from a death row inmate’s appeal after a radio interview in which he cited the man’s case in expressing support for capital punishment.

Justice Scott Crichton didn’t specify a reason for his recusal Tuesday from David Brown’s case, but the inmate’s attorney had questioned whether the elected justice could be impartial.

Brown was one of five inmates charged with first-degree murder in the killing of a prison guard during a 1999 escape attempt at Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola.

Brown’s lawyer, William Sothern, said in a court filing Monday that Crichton mentioned the so-called “Angola 5” case during an Oct. 23 talk radio interview in which he argued the death penalty is a deterrent because executed inmates can’t kill guards.