Lawyers clear prosecutor in Noura Jackson case
Shelby County Assistant District Attorney Steve Jones did not intentionally or knowingly fail to timely disclose evidence in the case of Noura Jackson, lawyers said Thursday in clearing the prosecutor of misconduct charges.
Lawyers who decided the case brought by the Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee found there "should be no professional sanction associated with an isolated, inadvertent" rules violation.
"Under our system of criminal justice, prosecutors have enormous power and exercise tremendous discretion; therefore, prosecutors must always be held to the highest ethical standards," they said in the order. "Nevertheless, prosecutors are still human beings who make inadvertent mistakes. Although these mistakes could have grievous consequences to the prosecutors and, more critically, criminal defendants, there are other avenues for addressing those consequences."
Jones prosecuted Jackson with now-Shelby County District Attorney General Amy Weirich in the killing of Jackson's mother, Jennifer Jackson, who was fatally stabbed in June 2005 in her East Memphis home.
The prosecution was pending "for a considerable time" when Weirich asked Jones to assist as "second chair" in the prosecution, according to the order. Jones assisted in Noura Jackson's prosecution from about two months before the trial through proceedings after the trial.
Jackson's second-degree murder conviction was thrown out after the Tennessee Supreme Court found Weirich made an improper comment on Jackson's right to remain silent and that the prosecution violated Jackson's right to due process by failing to turn over a statement by an important witness until after the trial. Weirich is also charged with misconduct and her disciplinary hearing is scheduled for March 23-24.
Jackson entered an Alford plea on a reduced charge of voluntary manslaughter in 2015, and was released from prison last August. She has maintained that she's innocent.
Lawyers hearing Jones' case found his account of what happened with the evidence — a handwritten statement by witness Andrew Hammack — to be "entirely credible."
Jones said he received the statement during the trial, briefly reviewed it, put it in the flap of a notebook and forgot about it.
"None of the evidence in this matter suggests (Jones) acted intentionally," according to the lawyers' written decision. "Nearly all of the witnesses attested to (Jones') integrity and candor, and even Jackson's defense attorneys did not allege that (Jones) had intentionally withheld Hammack's handwritten note."
The panel lawyers found that "in the press of a very busy and high profile trial, (Jones) made a mistake. It was a serious mistake with serious consequences; nevertheless, it was still an inadvertent mistake."
Weirich said in a statement she is "grateful to the hearing panel for their hard work and for this thorough and well-reasoned opinion. I am so happy for Steve and his family and for this affirmation of his integrity and professionalism.”
The order in the decision was entered by attorneys Hayden Lait and Michael Tauer with Leland McNabb issuing a concurring opinion.
"This is a hard case," McNabb said. "It is hard to determine whether the handwritten note, considered alone, negated or tended to negate Noura Jackson's guilt."
He said Jones forgot to turn over the handwritten note, but disclosed the error when he realized his omission.
"(Jones) disclosure of the handwritten note demonstrated honesty about his error," McNabb said.
The order is here: https://www.scribd.com/document/340745884/Jones-Order.
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