WEBVTT - Last Best Chance

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<v Speaker 1>Dear Governor is a production of I Heart Media and

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<v Speaker 1>three Months Media. If you are moved by Jarvis Masters

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<v Speaker 1>and his thirty years struggle on San Quentin's death throw,

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<v Speaker 1>and you'd like to support his cause, please consider signing

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<v Speaker 1>a petition on his behalf. Visit Free Jarvis dot org

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<v Speaker 1>slash podcast to sign your name to an open letter

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<v Speaker 1>to California Governor Gavin Newsom. Dear Governor Newsom, Dear Mr

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<v Speaker 1>Governor Newsom. This is an open letter to Governor Gavin Newsom,

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<v Speaker 1>Dear Governor news Public. In season one of Dear Governor,

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<v Speaker 1>the California Supreme Court reaffirmed the death sentence of Jarvis Masters,

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<v Speaker 1>despite the fact that his defense team presented credible new

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<v Speaker 1>evidence that he was not a party to the conspiracy

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<v Speaker 1>that took the life of Corrections Officer Howell Birchfield thirty

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<v Speaker 1>five years ago. You have yet to do so, we

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<v Speaker 1>encourage you to listen to season one from the beginning

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<v Speaker 1>to get to know Jarvis and the heartbreaking but life

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<v Speaker 1>affirming story that has gotten him to this point. Since

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<v Speaker 1>his final state appeal, a stellar new team of attorneys

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<v Speaker 1>has assembled around Jarvis and pledged to represent him through

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<v Speaker 1>the federal appeals process. In season two, we will meet

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<v Speaker 1>some of those attorneys and followed them as they work

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<v Speaker 1>to help Jarvis find freedom after forty years of incarceration,

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<v Speaker 1>and we will dig deeper into facets of Jarvis's life

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<v Speaker 1>as well as the deeply flawed criminal justice system. Jarvis

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<v Speaker 1>has asked that we devote this season to the life

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<v Speaker 1>and recent passing of Michael Satris, a personal friend of

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<v Speaker 1>Jarvis and one of the criminal defense attorneys who represented

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<v Speaker 1>him in the murder trial in which Jarvis was sentenced

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<v Speaker 1>to death. Michael devoted forty four years of practice advocating

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<v Speaker 1>for people involved in the criminal justice system. In in in

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<v Speaker 1>nineteen seventy six, he co founded the Prison Law Office,

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<v Speaker 1>a nonprofit that achieved historic legal victories for prisoners in California.

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<v Speaker 1>Me and Michael had very, very fond memories, and we

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<v Speaker 1>laughed in court, and we was shocked by certain things.

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<v Speaker 1>Jarvis masters on his friendship with the late Michael Satriss.

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<v Speaker 1>I sat next to Michael for four or five years.

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<v Speaker 1>I remember one time I thought the man was going

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<v Speaker 1>to go to jail. I mean, he he wouldn't sit down,

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<v Speaker 1>judge him, sit down, sit down. The Missatress and Michael

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<v Speaker 1>would not. The judge didn't understand what his argument was,

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<v Speaker 1>and he just kept saying denied. I'm denying your motion.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm denying. And then the judge said something like I'm

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<v Speaker 1>done with it. Sit down, Mrssatress and Mike. I looked

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<v Speaker 1>up at Mike, and Mike says, well, you know, before

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<v Speaker 1>I do that, I want to make a record of

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<v Speaker 1>and I thought for me was going to jail, really,

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<v Speaker 1>you know. So that was one time when I had

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<v Speaker 1>to tell Mike, you don't have to slow your role, man,

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<v Speaker 1>because you didn't know where I'm at. One thing about

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<v Speaker 1>Mike Fatress. Even though he left my case after the

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<v Speaker 1>case was leftful, we stayed in contact with each other.

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<v Speaker 1>He also did a lot of work when he didn't

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<v Speaker 1>have to get me out of solitary confinement. It was

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<v Speaker 1>nothing that you know, anyone paid him for. It was

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<v Speaker 1>him knowing that I had been in solitary confinement for

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<v Speaker 1>twenty something years, and he really really, you know, said,

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<v Speaker 1>you know what, drivers, even though you lost this case

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<v Speaker 1>and we did our best and justice failed you and

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<v Speaker 1>all that, he said, I'm gonna try my best to

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<v Speaker 1>get you out of solitary confinement and he spent a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of time, did a lot of work on doing that.

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<v Speaker 1>So I definitely want to give him shouts out for that.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, my name is Bonnie Jones and I was

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<v Speaker 1>married to Michael for forty three years. The funny story

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<v Speaker 1>this is right at the beginning of the representation, and

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<v Speaker 1>this was back January and our second daughter was overdue

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<v Speaker 1>and I said to Michael, had a doctor's appointment and

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<v Speaker 1>she was five days overdue. And I said, I think

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<v Speaker 1>the doctor is going to induce the baby. And he said, well, gee,

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<v Speaker 1>can he do it in the afternoon because I have

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<v Speaker 1>a hearing for Jarvis in the morning. And I said,

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<v Speaker 1>I think the doctor will induce the baby when the

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<v Speaker 1>baby needs to be induced. And I drove myself to

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<v Speaker 1>the doctor's appointment, and in fact, they broke my water

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<v Speaker 1>and the baby was in distress, and I went into

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<v Speaker 1>labor and drove myself to the hospital and labor and

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<v Speaker 1>Michael showed up that after the hearing. But it speaks

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<v Speaker 1>to my dedication to his clients. Yeah, Michael was very

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<v Speaker 1>focused and dedicated on on Jarvis and was just devastated

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<v Speaker 1>when he received the deft sentence. But one thing about

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<v Speaker 1>Michael that he accepted people of who they were, and

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<v Speaker 1>I think that's because he accepted himself. He wasn't foolish,

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<v Speaker 1>but he just met people and saw the best in them.

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<v Speaker 1>To get us up to date with Jarvis's appeals process

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<v Speaker 1>and to better understand what we can anticipate and where

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<v Speaker 1>we go from here, we invited back Stanford Professor of

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<v Speaker 1>law Lawrence Marshall, who was instrumental in helping to attract

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<v Speaker 1>Kirkland and Ellis to represent Jarvis. In criminal cases, and

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<v Speaker 1>particularly so in capital cases. If you have been convicted

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<v Speaker 1>in the state courts and in the capital cases, if

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<v Speaker 1>your sentence has been upheld as a capital sentence, you

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<v Speaker 1>have the right to seek review in federal court, and

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<v Speaker 1>that's typically known as habeas corpus federal habeas corpus. And

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<v Speaker 1>what you're doing is you're going into federal court and

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<v Speaker 1>saying that I am being held or my sentence is

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<v Speaker 1>being imposed in violation of the United States Constitution. So

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<v Speaker 1>you're really only going in on federal constitutional claims, because

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<v Speaker 1>when it comes to issues of state law, you know

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<v Speaker 1>some evidence ruling under state law, the federal court is

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<v Speaker 1>in no position to second guess that, so you go

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<v Speaker 1>in and you say and this is called it's often

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<v Speaker 1>known as the Great Writ because of the power that

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<v Speaker 1>it has to ensure fidelity to the Constitution. And historically

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<v Speaker 1>there have been times when state courts and I'm not

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<v Speaker 1>saying California is like this, but historically there have been

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<v Speaker 1>times when state courts have been unwilling to follow the

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<v Speaker 1>dictates of the Constitution. Think about cases in the South

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<v Speaker 1>in the nineteen thirties and forties, where you know, the

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<v Speaker 1>bias was so extreme and the pressure on judges was

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<v Speaker 1>so extreme that we couldn't have great confidence that constitutional

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<v Speaker 1>rights were being respected. And based on that, the Supreme

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<v Speaker 1>Court of the United States and Congress expanded expanded Habeas

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<v Speaker 1>corpus to create a remedy where you would have an

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<v Speaker 1>independent federal judge who was immune from any sort of

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<v Speaker 1>pressure deciding whether or not the case comported with constitutional requirements.

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<v Speaker 1>Why are they immune from from pressure? The unique part

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<v Speaker 1>of the federal judiciary is once you are appointed, regardless

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<v Speaker 1>of who appointed you, you have salary and tenure protections

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<v Speaker 1>you serve for the rest of your life unless you've

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<v Speaker 1>done something completely hard, I mean some sort of felony

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<v Speaker 1>or something, not a situation where we're going to second

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<v Speaker 1>guess what you did on on the bench. We have

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<v Speaker 1>that down here in Santa Clara County where a judge

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<v Speaker 1>was recalled thrown off the bench because people were unhappy

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<v Speaker 1>with a sentency imposed in a sexual assault case. In

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<v Speaker 1>the federal court that could never happen. Judges are inn

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<v Speaker 1>from that and are are able, therefore, with great job security,

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<v Speaker 1>to call them as they see them. Jarvis is in

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<v Speaker 1>the Northern District of California. That is where he's being held,

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<v Speaker 1>of course, San Quentin, but it's also by the same

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<v Speaker 1>token where the crime actually occurred. Uh, and then the

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<v Speaker 1>county in which he was convicted and sentenced. And that's

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<v Speaker 1>what we'll determine which federal court you're going to be in.

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<v Speaker 1>Does his his team will they be hiring like investigators

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<v Speaker 1>looking at the kron thirty years ago, or is this

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<v Speaker 1>purely just talking about constitutional issues so they're dealing with

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<v Speaker 1>what's on the table right now. I can tell you

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<v Speaker 1>that generally in these circumstances, the crux of what you'll

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<v Speaker 1>be doing is looking at what was presented in state

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<v Speaker 1>court and showing that they were constitutional violations, but by

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<v Speaker 1>the same token, investigations will continue, and if new evidence

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<v Speaker 1>does emerge, then efforts will be made to have the

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<v Speaker 1>federal court considered that new evidence. And there are a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of various doctrines that can allow that to happen.

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<v Speaker 1>So the answer is it's really dual track. In a

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<v Speaker 1>case of this magnitude, no one's going to stop investigating ever,

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<v Speaker 1>and the same token, the major focus of the habeas

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<v Speaker 1>petition is going to be what actually happened in the

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<v Speaker 1>state courts. Jarvis's team filed in November of two thousand twenty.

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<v Speaker 1>These things take considerable time, and obviously the idea that

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<v Speaker 1>all this is happening literally thirty five years, thirty six years,

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<v Speaker 1>thirty six years after the murder is just really mind bugging.

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<v Speaker 1>And Jarvis, have you been in custody for all but

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<v Speaker 1>a tiny period of of that span is just is

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<v Speaker 1>just really mind boggling. I asked Professor Marshall to help

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<v Speaker 1>us better understand the size and scope of the team

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<v Speaker 1>that's currently representing Jarvis. You know, Kirkland and ELA's is

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<v Speaker 1>a very serious law firm. Um, it's I should Although

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<v Speaker 1>I'm not one of the lawyers on the team, I

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<v Speaker 1>do have infiliation with the firm, doing some work with them,

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<v Speaker 1>and they're considered to be among the you know, the

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<v Speaker 1>great firms of the world. The lawyers that they've put

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<v Speaker 1>on the case include lawyers with some very significant pro

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<v Speaker 1>bonal experience in death penalty cases, successful in some instances. Uh.

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<v Speaker 1>And then there's an army of associates, junior partners and

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<v Speaker 1>associates who are eagerly engaging with the project. So there

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<v Speaker 1>are a lot of lawyers, a lot of really really

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<v Speaker 1>smart and really dedicated lawyers. And you know, the number

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<v Speaker 1>fluctuates depending when people coming and leaving the firm or

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<v Speaker 1>having to leave the case because there you know, otherwise occupied.

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<v Speaker 1>But it's two senior partners, one junior partner, I believe,

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<v Speaker 1>and I'd say four or five associates. When Kirkland and

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<v Speaker 1>Ellis agreed to represent Jarvis, he was elated. I would

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<v Speaker 1>imagine that a lot of the folks come to them

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<v Speaker 1>in asking them for pro bono services. Was there something

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<v Speaker 1>about Jervis's case that they found particularly compelling that pushed

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<v Speaker 1>them to take this under their wing? Be sure? You know,

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<v Speaker 1>I think when you put together two components of the case,

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<v Speaker 1>it becomes almost irresistible for a lawyer who is committed

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<v Speaker 1>to fighting, you know, for justice. And one of those

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<v Speaker 1>components is the nature of the evidence and how terribly,

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<v Speaker 1>terribly weak and problematic it was in the first instance,

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<v Speaker 1>even back at trial, but then how extraordinarily empty it

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<v Speaker 1>became once the state's witnesses, one by one each completely

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<v Speaker 1>recanted his testimony in front of a judge under oath

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<v Speaker 1>and said, you know, I lied when I said that

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<v Speaker 1>Jarvis Masters was involved. So we're left with a case

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<v Speaker 1>right now where it stands thoroughly on the testimony of

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<v Speaker 1>people who have since recanted that testimony. Now, so that's

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<v Speaker 1>one part of it. The other part of it is Jarvis,

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<v Speaker 1>Jarvis says, anybody who's been paying attention to the case knows,

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<v Speaker 1>is an extraordinary human being. Ah. He has emerged from

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<v Speaker 1>a background of just really unthinkable ugliness in terms of

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<v Speaker 1>his childhood and rearing and circumstances he found himself in

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<v Speaker 1>as a as a teenager, and he's become a thoughtful, sensitive,

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<v Speaker 1>caring man um And that's a very unique transformation. And

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<v Speaker 1>it is it's not that we couldn't have a system

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<v Speaker 1>where that's the norm. I think we could I think

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<v Speaker 1>people generally do tend to age out of a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of their criminality. So the idea that he's become a

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<v Speaker 1>straight if you will, uh, while abiding, because he's not

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<v Speaker 1>getting he's not up there getting violations and getting involved

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<v Speaker 1>in things in the prisons. Um. The idea that he's

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<v Speaker 1>done that shouldn't be too unusual, but it given the

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<v Speaker 1>circumstances on death row, it it is at some level

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<v Speaker 1>given you horrifying. Those circumstances are. So when you put

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<v Speaker 1>together just he the weakness of the case, and the

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<v Speaker 1>quality of the individual, and the leadership and inspiration he

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<v Speaker 1>provides for others, it really does become, as I say,

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<v Speaker 1>pretty irresistible. Could Jervis's case ever end up at the

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<v Speaker 1>Supreme court level? I mean, Jarvis has some issues in

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<v Speaker 1>the case, some federal constitutional issues that are very significant,

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<v Speaker 1>and you know, I am very hopeful that he will

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<v Speaker 1>secure relief in the trial court and if the state

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<v Speaker 1>chooses to appeal that that the Ninth Circuit would agree

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<v Speaker 1>uh and affirm is being given that relief. In the

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<v Speaker 1>event that those things didn't happen, I think Jarvis would have,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, a very strong chance of securing what's called

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<v Speaker 1>curtiary from the U. S. Supreme Court. That's when the

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<v Speaker 1>Supreme Court decides to hear a case. Doesn't do that

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<v Speaker 1>very often at all. It doesn't around eighty times for

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<v Speaker 1>the whole country for the whole year, but it doesn't

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<v Speaker 1>in and usually it wants certain kinds of cases that

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<v Speaker 1>have split the lower courts. But I think there are

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<v Speaker 1>aspects of Jarvis's case that are so compelling that I

0:15:36.560 --> 0:15:39.720
<v Speaker 1>would hope that they would be a strong candidate for

0:15:39.720 --> 0:15:43.640
<v Speaker 1>for certain As they said, so when you say relief

0:15:43.680 --> 0:15:46.040
<v Speaker 1>at the lower level, does that mean like, could he

0:15:46.080 --> 0:15:50.160
<v Speaker 1>be exonerated or what is the best case scenario for

0:15:50.200 --> 0:15:55.160
<v Speaker 1>his situation? The best case scenario given the claims that

0:15:55.640 --> 0:15:58.760
<v Speaker 1>are being advanced, and this is what's typically the case,

0:15:59.640 --> 0:16:04.120
<v Speaker 1>is that the federal court would say the conviction and

0:16:04.240 --> 0:16:10.120
<v Speaker 1>sentence are vacated and the case is remanded to state

0:16:10.160 --> 0:16:14.720
<v Speaker 1>court with the instruction to either let him go or

0:16:14.760 --> 0:16:19.920
<v Speaker 1>to retry him within X number of days. And that

0:16:20.320 --> 0:16:24.600
<v Speaker 1>is the most generally that a federal court can do.

0:16:24.800 --> 0:16:27.920
<v Speaker 1>There are rare instances where a federal court can go

0:16:28.000 --> 0:16:33.240
<v Speaker 1>beyond that and say that the evidence, even at the

0:16:33.320 --> 0:16:38.200
<v Speaker 1>time it was presented, was so insufficient and no reasonable

0:16:38.280 --> 0:16:41.800
<v Speaker 1>jury could convict. But that's an extremely rare thing to

0:16:41.880 --> 0:16:46.000
<v Speaker 1>have happened. Usually you're talking about a remand to the

0:16:46.040 --> 0:16:48.880
<v Speaker 1>state court for the state to make a decision on

0:16:48.920 --> 0:17:08.280
<v Speaker 1>how to proceed. My name is Jeffrey wrote Wine, and

0:17:08.560 --> 0:17:12.960
<v Speaker 1>I'm an attorney. I've been practicing for about forty five years.

0:17:13.560 --> 0:17:17.600
<v Speaker 1>I met Michael Satris in the late nineteen eighties. He

0:17:17.680 --> 0:17:20.879
<v Speaker 1>was an attorney on a capital case involving a killing

0:17:20.920 --> 0:17:23.720
<v Speaker 1>of a guard at San Quentin Prison in Burn County,

0:17:24.080 --> 0:17:27.240
<v Speaker 1>and they needed a second attorney and I was appointed

0:17:27.680 --> 0:17:30.080
<v Speaker 1>to work with him and to represent our our client,

0:17:30.200 --> 0:17:34.280
<v Speaker 1>Jarvis Masters. We represented Jarvis through the preliminary hearing into

0:17:34.320 --> 0:17:36.520
<v Speaker 1>the trial, all the way through the guilt trial into

0:17:36.560 --> 0:17:40.360
<v Speaker 1>the penalty phase of the trial as well. In so,

0:17:40.760 --> 0:17:43.479
<v Speaker 1>I am really, really really gonna miss Michael. I already

0:17:43.520 --> 0:17:45.800
<v Speaker 1>have I talked talking to my wife this morning about it.

0:17:45.840 --> 0:17:48.960
<v Speaker 1>I can't believe Michael's gone. He had a great reputation,

0:17:49.200 --> 0:17:54.320
<v Speaker 1>a really sterling reputation in the legal community, with the judges,

0:17:54.400 --> 0:17:58.280
<v Speaker 1>with the courts. His closing argument in the penalty phase

0:17:58.800 --> 0:18:03.480
<v Speaker 1>with Jarvis was just brilliant. It was so meaningful and

0:18:03.560 --> 0:18:07.320
<v Speaker 1>warm and personal and frankly, I got tears in my eyes.

0:18:07.359 --> 0:18:10.280
<v Speaker 1>I mean, it was just it was It was not

0:18:10.400 --> 0:18:14.480
<v Speaker 1>it was not legal. It was very humanistic about Jarvis

0:18:14.480 --> 0:18:16.840
<v Speaker 1>and about life and about life and who he was.

0:18:17.000 --> 0:18:22.000
<v Speaker 1>But who Jarvis was, it was incredibly moving. Following, Attorney

0:18:22.119 --> 0:18:25.560
<v Speaker 1>Rick Targo volunteered to read excerpts of Michael Satras's final

0:18:25.600 --> 0:18:28.960
<v Speaker 1>plea in the penalty phase of Jarvis's capital case. Rick

0:18:29.000 --> 0:18:31.840
<v Speaker 1>had been appointed by the California Supreme Court to Associate

0:18:31.880 --> 0:18:35.439
<v Speaker 1>Council in the appeal of Jarvis's conviction and sentence, and

0:18:35.480 --> 0:18:37.960
<v Speaker 1>through the years he got to know and appreciate Michael

0:18:38.000 --> 0:18:43.679
<v Speaker 1>Satris and his stellar reputation. Michael Satris's closing arguments in

0:18:43.760 --> 0:18:50.520
<v Speaker 1>defense of Jarvis j Masters, July three. Some are born

0:18:50.640 --> 0:18:55.560
<v Speaker 1>to sweet delight. Some are born to endless night. We

0:18:55.720 --> 0:18:58.800
<v Speaker 1>know well from the evidence in this case, ladies and gentlemen,

0:18:58.840 --> 0:19:02.040
<v Speaker 1>the Jarvis Masters was not born into a life of

0:19:02.160 --> 0:19:05.720
<v Speaker 1>sweet delight. And we know just as certainly from the

0:19:05.840 --> 0:19:09.159
<v Speaker 1>verdicts that you have already rendered in these proceedings, that

0:19:09.320 --> 0:19:12.280
<v Speaker 1>he will live a life of endless night in state prison.

0:19:13.160 --> 0:19:16.240
<v Speaker 1>You can see his future that awaits him. It is

0:19:16.280 --> 0:19:19.639
<v Speaker 1>a very dark one. There's barely a light at the

0:19:19.760 --> 0:19:22.360
<v Speaker 1>end of that time, but there is a little bit

0:19:22.400 --> 0:19:26.320
<v Speaker 1>of light. There is a light of life. And the

0:19:26.400 --> 0:19:29.640
<v Speaker 1>question that faces you now is whether that little bit

0:19:29.680 --> 0:19:32.480
<v Speaker 1>of light is too much to give to Jarvis Masters.

0:19:33.080 --> 0:19:35.800
<v Speaker 1>The question is, is the life that Jarvis Masters has

0:19:35.880 --> 0:19:39.240
<v Speaker 1>led so far, that life you've heard so much about,

0:19:39.480 --> 0:19:42.359
<v Speaker 1>not a very happy one, not one that we would

0:19:42.359 --> 0:19:46.160
<v Speaker 1>wish on anybody. Is that life too good for him?

0:19:46.240 --> 0:19:49.720
<v Speaker 1>So that right now it must be put an immediate

0:19:49.840 --> 0:19:53.320
<v Speaker 1>end to Right now, as soon as legally possible, direct

0:19:53.359 --> 0:19:56.520
<v Speaker 1>the state of California to place Jarvis Masters in the

0:19:56.560 --> 0:20:00.280
<v Speaker 1>gas chamber a few miles away from here. I think

0:20:00.280 --> 0:20:02.760
<v Speaker 1>there's one overall principle that the law is going to

0:20:02.840 --> 0:20:08.359
<v Speaker 1>give you. Remember this is Latin in favorum vite, in

0:20:08.480 --> 0:20:12.240
<v Speaker 1>favor of life. That's a principle that the law has

0:20:12.359 --> 0:20:15.720
<v Speaker 1>used to decide questions where they are complex and where

0:20:15.760 --> 0:20:20.320
<v Speaker 1>they are profound, where there's no ready answer. And what

0:20:20.359 --> 0:20:24.080
<v Speaker 1>the law does in this case is decide in favor

0:20:24.160 --> 0:20:27.240
<v Speaker 1>of life. And I think as you see the instructions,

0:20:27.280 --> 0:20:29.600
<v Speaker 1>you will see they tend to make it very easy

0:20:29.680 --> 0:20:32.080
<v Speaker 1>for you to return a verdict in favor of life.

0:20:32.680 --> 0:20:34.960
<v Speaker 1>And they make it very hard for you to return

0:20:35.080 --> 0:20:38.640
<v Speaker 1>a verdict in favor of death. The law is wise,

0:20:39.000 --> 0:20:42.280
<v Speaker 1>It knows its own limits. It knows it can't tell

0:20:42.359 --> 0:20:45.840
<v Speaker 1>you ever to impose death. At the most, what it

0:20:45.880 --> 0:20:48.760
<v Speaker 1>can do is leave you alone and let you make

0:20:48.800 --> 0:20:52.560
<v Speaker 1>that decision on your own personal moral judgment. The death

0:20:52.640 --> 0:20:56.160
<v Speaker 1>is required. If Mr Masters is put to death at

0:20:56.200 --> 0:20:59.600
<v Speaker 1>the direction of you by the state, that is something

0:20:59.640 --> 0:21:02.560
<v Speaker 1>you can not call back any more than any of

0:21:02.680 --> 0:21:05.880
<v Speaker 1>us can call back Sergeant Birchfield, which everyone in this

0:21:06.000 --> 0:21:08.760
<v Speaker 1>room I know would wish so fervently that we could.

0:21:09.200 --> 0:21:12.120
<v Speaker 1>You're in a hard position. It's not a happy position.

0:21:12.760 --> 0:21:16.520
<v Speaker 1>You have to decide between life and death. You found guilt,

0:21:16.720 --> 0:21:21.320
<v Speaker 1>which meant a life without possibility of parole. But choose

0:21:21.359 --> 0:21:27.520
<v Speaker 1>to believe, Choose to believe, do something that's positive. I'm positive.

0:21:28.080 --> 0:21:32.000
<v Speaker 1>Let's be positive. Let's hope that institutions can change and

0:21:32.040 --> 0:21:36.080
<v Speaker 1>take care of the situations. Let's hope that people can change.

0:21:36.359 --> 0:21:41.120
<v Speaker 1>Let's help them, let's encourage them. In this case, there

0:21:41.200 --> 0:21:44.960
<v Speaker 1>was talk about state raised and Jarvis is the paradigm

0:21:45.000 --> 0:21:48.720
<v Speaker 1>of being state raised. The state took charge of him

0:21:48.760 --> 0:21:51.119
<v Speaker 1>when he was six years old and he's been under

0:21:51.119 --> 0:21:53.800
<v Speaker 1>that care of the state in one form or another

0:21:53.880 --> 0:21:58.120
<v Speaker 1>since the state has been his parent. And now you're

0:21:58.119 --> 0:22:00.800
<v Speaker 1>supposed to be in the position of acting the state

0:22:00.880 --> 0:22:06.320
<v Speaker 1>to kill him. The state wants to kill him. Would

0:22:06.320 --> 0:22:10.879
<v Speaker 1>you kill your own child. It's not normal. You don't.

0:22:10.920 --> 0:22:15.280
<v Speaker 1>You don't you understand him. You do what you can,

0:22:15.920 --> 0:22:19.040
<v Speaker 1>and you don't give up. You don't just say he

0:22:19.119 --> 0:22:22.120
<v Speaker 1>hasn't done this thing. I haven't done mine. I failed,

0:22:22.200 --> 0:22:25.720
<v Speaker 1>he's failed. Let's just kill him. You don't do that

0:22:25.800 --> 0:22:28.400
<v Speaker 1>to your own children, and the state should not do

0:22:28.480 --> 0:22:33.199
<v Speaker 1>that in this case. As Mike was winding down, he

0:22:33.280 --> 0:22:35.560
<v Speaker 1>asked the judge how much time he had left, and

0:22:35.600 --> 0:22:39.359
<v Speaker 1>she said two minutes. Mike said, I want you to

0:22:39.400 --> 0:22:42.680
<v Speaker 1>think of Jarvis. Think of him as Jay. Remember Jay.

0:22:43.400 --> 0:22:46.000
<v Speaker 1>Remember him being kept in the dark of his house,

0:22:46.200 --> 0:22:49.080
<v Speaker 1>hiding out in the dark, jumping out of the window

0:22:49.160 --> 0:22:52.080
<v Speaker 1>at age four or five or whatever to scrounge food.

0:22:53.400 --> 0:22:58.399
<v Speaker 1>Remember Jay. Remember JJ who developed the relationship with his sister,

0:22:58.960 --> 0:23:01.880
<v Speaker 1>who had uncles who were in prison, supposedly taking care

0:23:01.880 --> 0:23:05.000
<v Speaker 1>of him in and out of prison. The violence in

0:23:05.080 --> 0:23:09.120
<v Speaker 1>that ghetto, the violence that started in the womb for Jarvis.

0:23:10.520 --> 0:23:14.240
<v Speaker 1>Remember in the end the person of Jarvis Masters, who

0:23:14.320 --> 0:23:17.159
<v Speaker 1>is here and now before you, and who you have

0:23:17.280 --> 0:23:21.199
<v Speaker 1>heard from personally and heard so much about. When you

0:23:21.280 --> 0:23:24.960
<v Speaker 1>decide whether it is really necessary, he'd be put to death.

0:23:26.960 --> 0:23:31.600
<v Speaker 1>Immediately Following Michael Satras's final argument, the court reaffirmed the

0:23:31.640 --> 0:23:35.680
<v Speaker 1>fact that the defendant has been found guilty of murder

0:23:35.680 --> 0:23:39.440
<v Speaker 1>in the first degree, and the special circumstances charge here

0:23:39.560 --> 0:23:43.000
<v Speaker 1>was also found to be true. They continued, the law

0:23:43.080 --> 0:23:46.159
<v Speaker 1>of this state is that penalty for a defendant found

0:23:46.160 --> 0:23:48.959
<v Speaker 1>guilty of murder in the first degree, where a special

0:23:49.000 --> 0:23:52.560
<v Speaker 1>circumstance has been found, he shall be put to death

0:23:52.680 --> 0:23:56.320
<v Speaker 1>or confinement in state prison for life without the possibility

0:23:56.359 --> 0:23:59.440
<v Speaker 1>of parole. Under the law of this state. You must

0:23:59.480 --> 0:24:03.359
<v Speaker 1>now considder which of these two penalties shall be imposed

0:24:03.359 --> 0:24:06.840
<v Speaker 1>on the defendant. You shall determine which of these two

0:24:06.880 --> 0:24:10.720
<v Speaker 1>penalties is appropriate. Of the three defendants and the murder

0:24:10.800 --> 0:24:14.560
<v Speaker 1>trial of Sergeant Birchfield. While Jarvis was easily and obviously

0:24:14.640 --> 0:24:18.680
<v Speaker 1>the least culpable, he was nevertheless arbitrarily sentenced to death.

0:24:19.040 --> 0:24:22.680
<v Speaker 1>And here he is, thirty years later, fighting for justice.

0:24:24.520 --> 0:24:27.480
<v Speaker 1>Next week on Dear Governor, A close personal friend of

0:24:27.560 --> 0:24:31.080
<v Speaker 1>Jarvis David Chef, author of the Buddhist on Death Row,

0:24:31.240 --> 0:24:34.600
<v Speaker 1>How One Man Found Light in the Darkest Place. This

0:24:34.680 --> 0:24:37.840
<v Speaker 1>episode was written and produced by Donni Fazzari and myself

0:24:37.920 --> 0:24:41.720
<v Speaker 1>Corny Cole. Our theme song sentenced is compliments of the

0:24:41.760 --> 0:24:45.760
<v Speaker 1>band Stick Figure from their album Set in Stone. Stu

0:24:45.880 --> 0:24:50.080
<v Speaker 1>Sternbach composed the original music. Nate Dufort did the sound design.

0:24:50.480 --> 0:24:52.960
<v Speaker 1>For more information on Jarvis and to find out how

0:24:53.040 --> 0:24:55.960
<v Speaker 1>you can follow his case and support his cause, please

0:24:56.080 --> 0:25:00.199
<v Speaker 1>visit free Jarvis dot org. For more podcasts or my

0:25:00.240 --> 0:25:04.440
<v Speaker 1>heart radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple podcasts,

0:25:04.640 --> 0:25:08.760
<v Speaker 1>or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. H