Susan Reed

Susan D. Reed is the Criminal District Attorney of Bexar County, Texas. Her office is currently involved in multiple controversies, including the one surrounding the disputed murder conviction of Ruben Cantu, a man executed by lethal injecton in 1993 by the State of Texas.

Biography

Reed was Elected District Attorney of Bexar County (San Antonio) in 1998, becoming the first woman to hold the office. She served as Judge of the 144th District Court (San Antonio) from 1986 to 1998. She served as an Assistant District Attorney for Bexar County from 1974 to 1982, including duties as chief prosecutor for court districts 144 and 187. Reed was in private practice from 1982 to 1986, with the firm Soules and Reed, specializing in business litigation.

Susan Reed spent her childhood in San Antonio, Texas, graduating from Alamo Heights High School. She earned a B.A. in Economics from the University of Texas at Austin. In 1974, she was received a Doctorate of Jurisprudence from the University of Texas School of Law. [http://www.bexar.org/da2/]

During her tenure as a 144th District Court Judge, she helped create a "Gang Unit" in the Adult Probation department. As Bexar County DA, she has created a new "Elder Fraud Unit". Reed is a member of the National Advisory Council on Violence Against Women. She was appointed on the Criminal Justice Policy Council for Gov. Bill Clements. Later, George W. Bush, as Governor of Texas, appointed her to serve on the Governor’s Juvenile Justice Advisory Board. She continues to serve on that board under Governor Perry. [http://www.bexar.org/da2/]

Involvements in the case of Ruben Cantu

The 1985 conviction and 1993 execution of Ruben Cantu have been the subject of a series of investigative articles by Houston Chronicle reporter Lise Olsen in 2005 and 2006. In those articles, Olsen uncovers evidence that undermines the Cantu conviction. According to Olsen's articles, the jury Forewoman, the then-District Attorney, the trial Judge, the co-defendant, and the surviving victim have all expressed misgivings about the outcome of the Cantu case. The only evidence linking Cantu to the crime was the testimony of Juan Moreno, the surviving victim, but he has since recanted his testimony, claiming he had felt threatened by police. (http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/printstory.mpl/chronicle/3472872)

As the current District Attorney, Susan Reed investigated the claims of wrongful conviction in the Cantu case and concluded that Cantu was justifiably executed in 1993 and that no credible evidence existed to support witnesses' innocence claims. Susan Reed was also the judge who rejected Cantu's appeal in 1988, and set his execution date in 1993.

Needle Exchange

Ms. Reed disapproves needle exchange operations. The San Antonio police, after tolerating needle exchanges operations for years unexpectedly cited volunteers Bexar Area Harm Reduction Coalition with a class C misdemeanor for possession of drug paraphernalia in January 2007. Ms. Reed elevated that to a class A distribution of paraphernalia charge. The Texas legislature had recently passed a needle exchange pilot project for the San Antonio area which Ms. Reed vehemently objected to. [http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/metro/stories/MYSA012308.01B.needleexchange.27e2be4.html]

External links

* [http://www.bexar.org/da2/]
* [http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/printstory.mpl/chronicle/3472872]