THE SINCLAIR CASE
Chapter Ten: Favort's Cowardly Retreat
My trial was set to start on June 6, 1966.
On the morning of the trial Favrot filed a motion to have the case removed from state to federal court on the ground that women had been systematically excluded from grand and petit jury service in the case.
Ralph Roy was incensed by the legal maneuver. His former mentor was teaching the corrupt prosecutor a lesson.
“Your Honor, I’m outraged that Mr. Favrot would come into this courtroom at this late date and pull this kind of stunt,” Roy told Judge LeBlanc
Favrot rose to his feet.
“Your Honor, I didn’t ask for this appointment,” he said. “It was forced on me. I don’t like being here, but as long as I am here, I will do everything in my power to protect the rights of this man to get a fair trial.”
The front two rows on the prosecution side of the courtroom were filled with the Bodden family, including Sadie who was fully attired in “mourning black,” and members of the Istrouma network. Some muttered curses under their breaths as Favrot spoke. It was something they would do throughout the four-day trial.
The case was removed to a nearby federal court. U.S. District Court Judge Herbert W. Christenberry drove from New Orleans to Baton Rouge that Monday afternoon to hear Favrot’s removal motion.
During the federal hearing, Favrot learned that his mother-in-law had died in North Louisiana.
The federal hearing did not last long. Christenberry agreed with Roy that the case should be sent back to state court.
Back in state court, Judge LeBlanc ordered the trial to commence the following morning.
Favrot whispered in my ear before I was escorted out of the courtroom that he would quickly prepare and file a motion for continuance before he left for Monroe to be with his wife during her bereavement.
“I have spoken to Judge LeBlanc. He assured me he will grant our continuance in the morning. I must leave the city. I have to be with my wife in Monroe to help with the funeral arrangements. I will leave Baton Rouge tonight. We’ll try the case when I return at the end of the week.”
When English entered the courtroom the next morning under the hostile stares of the Istrouma network, he was nervous being alone but fully expected the trial to be continued. But once the court was called into session and the proceedings got underway, it quickly became evident that Judge LeBlanc had no intention to delaying the trial. Pitcher, I suspect, leaned on the judge pretty hard the night before to get Favrot out of the case. He saw Favrot as a formidable opponent Roy would have trouble with but knew his rogue prosecutor would shred English.
English was stunned.
“Your Honor,” he told Judge LeBlanc. “Mr. Favrot was appointed as the attorney in this case. He has been acting in that capacity, filing the motions and getting a defense ready. He had a death in his family. He advised Your Honor of this. He informed the court that he was leaving the city. But before he left he joined me in a motion for a continuance on the ground that I am unprepared to proceed with the trial under any circumstances. The motion seeks a continuance for that reason.”
English paused as though trying to measure LeBlanc’s reaction. The judge gave none.
Favrot should have stayed to argue his own motion. Instead, he took the easy way out. He abandoned English and I to a racist judge, an unethical prosecutor, and a courtroom filled with people whose only purpose was to see me convicted and sentenced to death. Most legal experts would agree that defending a man on trial for his life is more important than handling mother-in-law’s funeral arrangements.
“Now, Your Honor, at my age, and in light of the service I have given this Honorable Court,” English continued, “I don’t think I should be forced to go through this trial alone under any circumstances. This is a capital case, and I appeal to Your Honor that it would be an imposition. We have absolute grounds. Continuances have been granted by this court on much less than what you have here. I recall just a week or so ago I had a case continued because there was a death of some relative of the attorney. That case was continued and nothing was said about it.”
“That attorney was the only defense counsel involved in the case, was he not?” Judge LeBlanc asked.
English’s speech impediment, a stuttering that became more pronounced under stress.
“I don’t know whether he was or not,” the 74-year-old attorney replied.
“Yes, he was,” the judge said.
“Regardless, the case was continued on a motion, I think, by the District Attorney,” English pressed on. ”Mr. Roy so advised me. He said he was moving for a continuance in the case.”
Judge LeBlanc was not impressed with the analogy.
“The State agreed to that continuance,” LeBlanc said. “What is the attitude of the State in this case?”
LeBlanc and Roy were on the same page.
“Well, Your Honor,” Roy said as he rose to take the stage, glancing back at the Istrouma alumni, “I haven’t seen whatever he’s filing, but our attitude here is this: as Your Honor knows the State is entitled to a speedy trial, just like the defendant. You had two attorneys appointed in this case. One has publicly declared he will not go to trial this week. He joined Mr. English in this motion but left town before he could be cross-examined. I think it’s a terrible indictment for Mr. English to stand before this Honorable Court on the day of trial and say he is not prepared for trial. He was appointed months ago.”
“Three months, in fact,” Judge LeBlanc joined in.
Even Roy took a pot shot at Favrot for fleeing “town before he could be cross-examined” about the need for a continuance.
It became obvious that the Istrouma folks were growing impatient with the procedural wrangling. They wanted the trial to get underway.
“And [English has] been active in this case,” Roy continued, flushed with satisfaction. “I submit he has not presented any legitimate grounds for a continuance. He is a competent attorney with all the qualifications required by law. This trial should proceed. I would remind the court that, as an attorney, Mr. English has an obligation to this court. He should be willing to accept that obligation as a privilege attached to his license to practice law.”
English’s hands trembled. He was in the initial stage of Parkinson’s disease. Dressed in a tattered and baggy suit, it was obvious to even a casual observer that he was not prepared to assume the obligation as lead counsel in a death penalty case.
“I don’t understand Mr. Roy taking such a demanding and unreasonable attitude,” English responded. “I would also like to mention for the record, Your Honor, that this case has been continued at least three times before, not by any defense motion. It was continued at the convenience of the District Attorney. So I don’t know why there is such a rush now.”
English was out of the loop. Favrot had not educated him about the Istrouma network. He was primarily a divorce and civil attorney. He was not a seasoned political veteran like Favrot who understood the city’s rough-and-tumble politics. English didn’t know anything about the Istrouma network sitting in the two front rows demanding a death sentence.
“In regards to that, Mr. English,” Judge LeBlanc said, “Mr. Favrot informed me, as well as the District Attorney, that he was going to have certain witnesses subpoenaed from California to testify at a pretrial hearing. We could not bring the case to trial until those preliminary matters were resolved. Sufficient time had to be afforded to get the witnesses here from out of state. Judge Favrot understood that. Those witnesses were finally brought here, and you and Judge Favrot were appointed to defend this accused on March 10, 1966. The accused was arrested in December of last year. He’s been in jail ever since. He was indicted on January 3, 1966, and since that time he has not been eligible for bond. As Mr. Roy points out, both the constitution and the law grant the accused the right to a speedy trial. That right is also granted to the State. As you know we are approaching the summer recess of the court. The court will shut down at the end of this month until September.”
“We can’t control that, Your Honor,” English sullenly interjected with the tone of a defeated man.
“No, you can’t control that,” the judge testily replied, “but you’ve had three months to get ready for trial. You just informed me that you are not ready. I’m at a loss to understand that, because you did not have a right to assume that whatever preliminary motions were filed in this case would be sustained. You must proceed on the premise that your motions will be denied. You have a duty to the court to be ready for trial. This court had a duty to appoint a qualified attorney to represent the defendant. I gave the defendant more than he was entitled under the law. I appointed two lawyers - both experienced [sic], qualified, competent attorneys. I did that in the event something happened to one of the attorneys. I wanted to have a second attorney prepared and ready to defend him. That is the situation today. The defendant is represented by counsel who is well able to defend him. If you are not ready for trial, you should be because you’ve had ample time to get prepared for trial. Now before I decide this matter, do you have anything else to say?”
Still English was not deterred by LeBlanc’s chastisement. He had much more to say. The case had been unfairly dumped on him. He wanted the record to reflect his displeasure about that.
“When two attorneys are appointed to a case, it is only natural and logical that one will assume the role as lead counsel,” English continued. That is what happened here. All the pretrial motions were prepared and filed by Mr. Favrot. He formulated whatever defense strategy he planned for this case. I’m not familiar with that strategy. Our offices are not together. We are not partners. In fact, I do not have a partner as Your Honor knows, nor does Mr. Favrot. I assisted Mr. Favrot in ways he directed, filing motions or making calls to the clerk, or what have you. Mr. Favrot did not share his defense strategy with me.”
English paused before abruptly turning to his brief case. He retrieved some papers from it. It was a stalling tactic, time needed to collect his thoughts. He had been pushed into a corner with no way out.
“If Your Honor will recall,” English resumed. “At least two other attorneys were appointed to this case. They both were relieved of their appointment for different reasons. Now, under the advice of one of those attorneys, the defendant entered a plea of insanity. He has been examined by doctors and, I assume, medical reports prepared. But there has been no sanity hearing conducted as required by law. Mr. Roy told me some time ago in passing that we had to have a sanity hearing. Well, I’ve heard nothing else from him. Now, under the criminal code, we are entitled to a hearing so that the doctors can testify about this man’s capacity to stand trial.”
“Wasn’t that insanity plea in reference to his mental capacity at the time of the crime?” LeBlanc asked.
“Yes, Your Honor, but it involved present insanity as well,” English replied. “The defendant was examined by two doctors, I believe. This was all done before Your Honor was assigned to the case. It’s been hard to keep up with all the lawyers and judges assigned to this case who have been removed.”
Kleinpeter had entered the insanity plea before he withdrew from the case. It was an accepted defense strategy in a capital case at the time: if the evidence of guilt was compelling, plead the defendant insane at the time of the crime, try to secure a commitment to the state’s forensic hospital, and hope that a plea bargain to a reduced charge would come at a later date.
Ossie Brown had also told me that was my only defense.
Favrot had felt the same way. That’s why he let the insanity plea stand.
“As I understand it” LeBlanc said, “Mr. Favrot sought and got an order for the accused to be examined by two experts of his choosing. He was incarcerated in jail and Mr. Favrot wanted him to be examined at the doctors’ offices. He got the court’s permission to do that, but that is not a sanity hearing. As I recall it, there was no order signed for the appointment of a lunacy commission to examine the accused as to his present sanity, and, therefore, there was no need for a hearing. The court simply appointed two experts to examine the accused to determine his sanity at the time of the crime. That is a defense that must be brought out during the trial. It is not a preliminary matter. That is something for the jury to decide, not the court.”
The Istrouma network had not expressed their upset too much when Judge Johnson appointed Brown to the case. They knew their Klan attorney would do their bidding by refusing to accept appointment to the case. But after Judge Johnson appointed Kleinpeter, who was an Istrouma graduate no less, the Istrouma network went ballistic. Kleinpeter was one of their own. Besides, he had a reputation for having never lost a capital case.
But the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back came the day Judge Johnson issued an order that I be examined by two medical experts. The Istrouma network stormed out of the courtroom uttering all sorts of threats. They went to Pitcher, pressuring him to have Johnson removed from the case. The district attorney quickly acquiesced. He got the case removed from Johnson’s court section and had it assigned to the section of his political ally, LeBlanc.
Ossie Brown, I’m sure, had warned the Istrouma network about the potential for an insanity defense. That I could be sent to the state’s criminal forensic facility for a couple years, returned to court for a guilty plea to manslaughter, and released from prison in a few years. They were not about to let that happen.
I didn’t know what Favrot intended to do with the insanity defense. I suspect that he never intended to try the case. He had an exit plan up his sleeve. English, I believe, was always intended to be the fall guy. Had it not been for the death of his mother-in-law, Favrot would have withdrawn from the case because of some health issue.
English, of course, was kept in the dark about everything. He had not participated with Favrot in developing any defense, or any other strategy the Judge might have had in mind. This became painfully evident during English’s exchanges with LeBlanc.
“We certainly have a right to the reports prepared by these doctors,” he told the court. “I have never seen those reports.”
English’s lack of legal knowledge was actually embarrassing.
“The appointment of the doctors came at the request of defense counsel,” Judge LeBlanc scolded. “The defense did not seek the appointment of a lunacy commission to determine present capacity. So the law does not require that the defense experts report to the court. They were employed by the defense to examine the accused. That’s a conventional agreement between defense counsel and the doctors which is no concern to this court. I have no control over your defense.”
“They were appointed by the court,” English persisted, oblivious to the professional embarrassment he was creating.
“The reason they were appointed was because the accused was in jail,” LeBlanc continued to explain. “As I understand it, the doctors did not want to examine the accused in jail. To accommodate the doctors, Judge Johnson directed the sheriff to transport the accused to their offices where he could be examined. That was not a lunacy commission examination requiring the court to conduct a hearing. Any evidence you may obtain from the examination by those doctors can be introduced during the trial. It is not something this court can deal with before trial.”
English was thoroughly confused.
“In other words, there’s no possibility we can use these doctors?” he asked.
“Not at this time,” LeBlanc informed him. “Not before the trial begins.”
“But, Your Honor, I had nothing to do with those arrangements,” English stammered. “That was all handled by Mr. Favrot.”
English seemed lost in his own argument.
Judge LeBlanc was not sympathetic. Short of English dropping dead in the courtroom, the judge was not about to delay the trial.
“Well, you have my decision,” the judge said. “I am satisfied you can get those reports.”
Like a stray dog, English refused to turn loose of the bone. He must be admired for that tenacity.
“Well, only one examination took place, and I insist on the second examination.”
“Today is the day of trial,” LeBlanc instructed. “In fact, yesterday was the day of trial. I have no control over what your defense did not do.”
“The court ordered two examinations and I think that order should be respected,” English replied.
The second examination did not take place because Favrot probably had become convinced that there was no basis for the insanity defense. The first examination had determined I was legally sane at the time of the crime. I guess he saw no need for the second examination.
But English was desperate for a continuance. He was being pressured to defend a highly controversial capital case for which he had no defense.
“Well, I ask for a continuance until the other examination can take place,” he said.
Roy had bided his time. English did not pose a threat to his death penalty strategy. Strumming a pencil on a legal pad, he had sat quietly while English floundered. Then he pounced.
“Your Honor, I was there when Judge Johnson signed that order,” the prosecutor said, not rising from his chair. “It specifically stated those examinations would be made before the date of trial.”
“Well, I would like to see the order,” LeBlanc said.
“The order just authorized the sheriff to take the accused to the doctor’s office,” Roy continued.
“That was my understanding,” LeBlanc said. “But since I didn’t sign the order, we can clarify this matter by getting the order and putting it in the record.”
The court recessed for several minutes.
English was frustrated, and angry. Several members of the Istrouma network stopped behind us as they filed out of the courtroom. I had never seen such hatred, such hostility. They wanted me dead at that moment in that precise spot. They cursed before barging past other spectators as they left the courtroom.
“I don’t like any of this,” English told me. “Favrot told me a continuance had been arranged. He should not have left like he did. He could have stayed and presented this motion. One more night would not have made that much difference. I am being made the scapegoat here – all those people want to string me up with you. I have to work in this town.”
They were indeed an intimidating group.
Dressed in that mourning black, white handkerchief in hand, Sadie sat with her parents. They were a striking trio. Her father was a Freemason who worked with J.C.’s father who was, I’m sure, a Freemason as well. That was all I needed – a conspiracy-worshipping secret society trying to kill me.
George Beard, one of Sadie’s cousins, would tell me years later in Angola that Sadie’s parents, Rae and Mary Booth Ferguson, “were vengeful, spiteful, un-Christian people.”
I will never know exactly how much political pressure Cannon, Kennard or others brought to bear behind the scenes. J.C. parents and Sadie parents were part of the formidable Istrouma network but I do not believe they had any “political influence” per se. They simply had access to the power brokers in the Istrouma network, but that does not mean they were not threatening, spiteful people. Ossie Brown said J.C.’s father threatened him about handling my case.
What I learned very early in my incarceration was that anyone who came in contact with “the Sinclair case” had a fear of what was known to me only as “the opposition,” or “those people,” or “the Billy Cannon crowd.” Ginger Roberts told me that she had never been involved in a case with “entrenched political opposition” like that which existed in “the Sinclair case.”
I saw fear in English’s eyes that day in the courtroom. It was the same fear that drove Favrot out of town in the middle of the night under the guise of being with his wife “during her bereavement;” the same fear that caused Kennard to have Roberts come to his home “after dark” so he could sign his affidavit that effectively exonerated me of having killed Bodden in a “cool and calm” manner.
It is ironical, almost poetic that a Google search today does not reveal any historical information about Favrot, not even an obituary. Ossie Brown, Sargent Pitcher, and Fred LeBlanc have a Google presence – but not Favrot or Ralph Roy. They exist, if at all, in a historical abyss.