Stay of Execution

Oklahoma Board of Pardon and Parole
4040 N. Lincoln Blvd.
Oklahoma City, OK 73105

Re: Gerardo Valdez 

Dear Board Member: 

We write on behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union to respectfully request that you vote to commute the sentence of Gerardo Valdez to life in prison. We believe that the circumstances of the case merit this extraordinary relief. 

Whether or not you support the use of the death penalty, there is no question that it must be applied only to those who are the most culpable, and only once they have had full access to due process. In this case, there are concerns on both those counts. 

Mr. Valdez was represented at trial by a single attorney who had no prior experience working in a capital case, and who was not given any investigative assistance. Capital cases are often quite time consuming and complicated. A moment's inattention, or confusion about the law by counsel could mean the difference between life and death for a client. That the assistance Mr. Valdez received was so limited gives us great concern. 

Moreover, Mr. Valdez's rights to due process were significantly violated when he was not told that he could contact the Consul of the Mexican government. Had Mr. Valdez been able to contact the Mexican government early in his case, they could have offered assistance which would have made a difference in the quality of his defense. Indeed, since learning of Mr. Valdez's case a few weeks ago, the Mexican government has retained experienced capital litigators, an experienced investigator, and a bilingual neuropsychologist. Had Mr. Valdez received this assistance prior to his original trial, the outcome would have probably been different. 

Mr. Valdez's childhood was one of extreme poverty. Throughout much of his childhood he lived without electricity or running water. He never graduated from high school because his family was constantly moving. The jury was never told of his childhood during the trial. Had they been told of it, they may have been convinced to spare his life. 

In addition, several factors lead us to believe that Mr. Valdez had reduced capacity to distinguish between right and wrong during his crime. Mr. Valdez is borderline mentally retarded, and has sustained severe head injuries on at least one occasion which may have caused brain damage, further reducing his mental capacity. Mr. Valdez has difficulty filtering information, which leads to mental confusion in times of stress. In addition, the most reliable analysis suggests that Mr. Valdez was acting under a delusional state of mind when he committed the crime. This state made him irrational in his thought process and gave him delusions of extreme grandiosity. The death penalty should be applied only to the most culpable, and Mr. Valdez clearly falls below that level. 

The American Civil Liberties Union opposes the death penalty as an unconstitutional violation of civil liberties. However, these serious concerns about Mr. Valdez's trial, and evidence of his reduced culpability, make his case particularly worthy of mercy. 

Sincerely, 

Diann Rust-Tierney
ACLU Capital Punishment Project

Joann Bell
ACLU of Oklahoma