Urge Louisiana Governor Blanco to Pardon Gary Tyler Now (tags)
Urge Governor Kathleen Blanco to ensure that Tyler gets a new pardon board hearing, and then pardon Tyler before she leaves office in January Gary Tyler, an African-American man, is currently serving a life sentence without chance of parole for the 1974 murder of a 13-year-old white student. Although he was only 16 at the time of the incident, Tyler was charged as an adult in a trial that was seriously flawed. Despite a climate of extreme racial tension in the town of Destrehan, Louisiana, there was no change of venue for the trial. In addition, the jury was all white; members of the black community were deliberately excluded. Tyler's defense attorney did not interview any witnesses, failed to prepare for trial, and spent only one hour with Tyler throughout the entire year previous to the trial. Furthermore, since the trial, key prosecution witnesses have recanted their testimony.