IN LOVING MEMORY OF 3 MURDERED CHILDREN (MURDERED BY CAMERON TODD WILLINGHAM, WHO WAS EXECUTED IN TEXAS ON 17 FEBRUARY 2004)

           On this date, 17 February 2004, a psychopath by the name of Cameron Todd Willingham was executed by lethal injection in Texas for the arson murder of his three children. As usual, the abolitionists in the U.S.A claim that he is innocent, but I doubt it after going through the facts of the case. To learn more, please go here.

            Let us not forget the three children, we must hear from the mother, Stacy Kuykendall. As much as I have great empathy and sympathy for victims and their families, I have feeling for her too. I personally wish the media can stop portraying Willingham as a gentle lamb when he is a violent psychopath. It is time to leave Stacy alone, she was satisfied that justice was served and not live in fear of her violent ex-husband.

Stacy Kuykendall press conference

October 6, 2010 8:57 AM | Posted by Kent Scheidegger | 1 Comment | No TrackBacks

From the Corsicana Daily Sun:

Corsicana -- The  Associated Press is reporting that Stacy Kuykendall, former wife of Cameron Todd Willingham, will hold a press conference today before an Austin judge is scheduled to begin a hearing on whether or not Cameron Willingham was wrongly executed for the deaths of his three daughters in a 1991 fire ruled as arson.

Judge Charlie Baird is scheduled to begin the hearing at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday in Austin, at the request of the Willingham family.

Navarro County District Attorney Lowell Thompson filed a motion Monday asking that Baird recuse himself from the case due to his involvement in a prior appeal, and the judge's connections with an anti-death penalty organization.

Stacy Kuykendall's press conference is scheduled for 11 a.m. Wednesday.

That is a few minutes after the writing of this post.

Update (noon Austin time): Jeff Carlton reports on the press conference for AP:

Stacy Kuykendall read a prepared statement to reporters outside the Travis County courthouse. She told reporters that Cameron Todd Willingham set the fire that killed the girls "and watched while their tiny bodies burned."

*                             *                            *

"My ex-husband murdered my daughters, and just before he was executed, he told me he did it," Kuykendall said.

Kuykendall voice began quavering early in her statement, as she noted her oldest daughter would be 21 and her twins would be 19. "I think about my girls every day and I miss them," she said.

Update 2: Steven Kreytak continues his coverage in the AA-S.

Update 3:  The text of Ms. Kuykendall's statement, courtesy of Johnny Sutton, her attorney, follows the jump. 

My name is Stacy Kuykendall and I was married to Todd Willingham.

Time and time again, I have been asked to speak to the public about the murder of my daughters.  

Amber would be 21 years old today and the twins, Karmon and Kameron, would be 19.

I am here today to stand up one last time on behalf of my daughters.  After today, I hope that you will leave me in peace and let me deal with my grief the best that I can.  

I think about my girls everyday and I miss them.  

My ex-husband murdered my daughters, and just before he was executed, he told me he did it - he stood and watched while their tiny bodies burned.  

I am here to make sure that my girls' voices are heard: Todd murdered Amber, Karmon and Kameron. He burned them, he admitted he burned them to me, and he was executed for his crime. 

That's the closest to justice that my daughters will ever get.

http://www.crimeandconsequences.com/crimblog/2010/10/stacy-kuykendall-press-confere.html

Cameron Todd Willingham's Ex-Wife Stacy Kuykendall Says Texas Shouldn't Pardon Him [EXCLUSIVE]

Posted: 11/01/2012 4:08 pm EDT 

Standing in the way of a pardon for a Texas man that his family considers was wrongly convicted and executed is his ex-wife.

For years, Stacy Kuykendall advocated for Cameron Todd Willingham, stating repeatedly that she believed he didn't deliberately start the house fire that killed their three daughters in 1991. 

She reversed herself shortly before his 2004 execution, declaring that she now considered him guilty for murdering their 2-year-old daughter and her 1-year-old twin sisters.

As Willingham's relatives seek to erase his conviction, with experts dismissing the original fire investigation as primitive and conducted using out-of-date techniques, Kuykendall renewed her insistence that her ex-husband started the blaze. 

"Todd is guilty, the criminal justice system and the courts confirmed his guilt, and he should not be pardoned for his crimes," Kuykendall said in an exclusive statement to The Huffington Post. "My girls would have been 23 and 21 years old today. I miss them so much."

Her words could hinder the latest attempts by Willingham's stepmother Eugenia Willingham and cousin Patricia Willingham Cox to alter his record. Last week, the pair filed a petition with the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to recommend a pardon for Willingham.

The Texas parole board checks with victims' families, the prosecutor and other people involved in the original murder case before deciding whether to recommend that the governor issue a pardon. That process could take months. 

"I read that Todd’s stepmom and cousin are asking the governor for a pardon. I don’t blame Todd’s stepmom for fighting for her son," Kuykendall said in her statement. "Mothers love their children and always will, no matter what happens in their lives.

"Eugenia loved Todd, and I understand why she does not want to face the facts of what he did to our girls," Kuykendall said.

Willingham maintained his innocence until the day he died, but his conviction was upheld on appeals in state and federal court. A leading arson expert in 2004, however, concluded in a report that the testimony from fire investigators used against Willingham was no longer scientifically valid. Gov. Rick Perry turned down an eleventh-hour request to stop the execution. 

The case was originally prosecuted by the Navarro County district attorney. The current DA, R. Lowell Thompson, told HuffPost he doesn't plan to challenge the pardon request.

Saying that Willingham is guilty is not new for Kuykendall, but it's a 180-degree change from the early years of the case. 

At the time of the fire, Kuykendall and Willingham were newlyweds. She told investigators that they hadn't been fighting and that her husband would never hurt their children. 

Even after their divorce, she continued to proclaim Willingham's innocence, as in a 1999 recorded interview with a teacher researching the case.

But by 2004, she had declared Willingham guilty. She told the Corsicana Daily Sun that a close examination of the evidence persuaded her that Willingham was not innocent. 

In 2009, she unleashed a startling accusation that Willingham confessed the crime to her when she visited him on death row. Though she hadn't said this to investigators or during his trial, Kuykendall said she threatened to divorce Willingham the night before the fire. 

She stood by that claim in her statement to HuffPost 

"I did not want to believe that he could kill our children either, but he did," she said. "Shortly before his execution, I spoke to Todd about the murders and he admitted his guilt to me."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/01/cameron-todd-willingham-stacy-kuykendall-texas-pardon_n_2058042.html