Thomas Bartlett Whitaker

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Thomas Bartlett Whitaker
Born (1979-12-31) December 31, 1979 (age 42)
Houston, Texas[citation needed]
NationalityAmerican
Other namesRudy Rios
Criminal statusIncarcerated
MotiveMonetary gain (prosecution)
Mental illness (defense)
Criminal chargeCapital murder
PenaltyDeath (commuted to life imprisonment without parole)
Partner(s)
  • Chris Brashear
  • Steven Champagne
Details
Victims
  • Kevin Whitaker and Patricia Whitaker (19 and 51, deceased)
  • Kent Whitaker (52, survived)
DateDecember 10, 2003

Thomas Bartlett "Bart" Whitaker (born December 31, 1979) is an American man convicted under the Texas Law of Parties of murdering two family members as a 22-year old. Whitaker was convicted for the December 10, 2003 murders of his mother and 19-year old brother, and sentenced to death in March 2007.[1] He spent years on death row at the Polunsky Unit near Livingston, Texas before commutation of his sentence. On February 22, 2018, about 40 minutes before his scheduled 6:00 p.m. execution, Whitaker had his death sentence commuted to life imprisonment without parole by Governor Greg Abbott, the first such commutation by Abbott and the first in the state since 2007.[2][3] As of September 2021, Whitaker resided in the McConnell Unit in Beeville, Texas.[4][5]

Early life and education[]

Thomas Bartlett Whitaker was born on December 31, 1979, to father Kent, the comptroller of a construction company, and mother Patricia (Trish), an elementary school teacher,[5][6] in Houston, Texas.[citation needed] Thomas Bartlett, also called "Bart",[5] would become older brother to a second son, Kevin, about three years younger, after which his mother Trish would leave her teaching to provide additional care to Kevin, who had a learning disability.[6] The family lived in Sugar Land, Texas, "an affluent, homogeneous community outside Houston", where Bell Chevigny, writing in Medium.com, describes Bart at age 12 as becoming jealous of his brother, and "withdr[awing] to the world of books", including Albert Camus’ The Stranger (which she notes as a work with murderous parallels).[6]

Whitaker attended Clements High School where in 1997 as a 17-year old he received a criminal conviction for a series of seven burglaries that he had "meticulous[ly]" planned, leading other young friends in the spree.[7] In that same time frame,[when?] Whitaker's parents had bought him several luxury vehicles.[8]: Ch.50 [page needed] Whitaker began attending Baylor University in 2001, transferring from there to Sam Houston State University (SHSU), where he was thought by his parents to be in attendance in late 2003, and from which he was expected to graduate.[9][4] He had lied to his parents about his continued status in college; varying reports had him dropping out of SHSU months before,[10] or being present there as a freshman on academic probation.[4] His parents funded his academic pursuits.[citation needed] In addition, they purchased a lakeside townhouse in Willis, Texas for his use, and a $4,000 Rolex watch was given to him as a college graduation present hours before the murders.[8]: Ch.50 [page needed]

Murders[]

On December 10, 2003, Thomas Bartlett "Bart" Whitaker falsely told his family that he had just taken his final university exams and would soon be graduating from SHSU.[citation needed] They drove to the nearby Pappadeaux restaurant in Stafford for a celebratory dinner.[citation needed] Whitaker had enlisted an individual named Chris Brashear to carry out the shootings, and a Steven Champagne to be the getaway driver for Brashear.[11] Brashear, dressed in black (including a ski mask), entered the Whitaker family home, took Kevin's gun and ammunition from a locked box in his room, staged a burglary, and then waited near the front door for the Whitaker family to return home.[12][third-party source needed] Upon returning home, but before entering the house, Bart said that he needed to collect his cell phone from his parked Yukon[clarification needed], knowing that Brashear was armed and waiting inside to kill his family. Bart's brother Kevin entered the family home first and reportedly smiled when he saw the masked Brashear. Brashear shot Kevin once through his chest, and Kevin fell to the floor. Patricia was then also shot in the chest, also falling to the floor. Kent rushed in and was shot in the shoulder with the bullet shattering his humerus.[12][third-party source needed] Bart then ran inside and staged a struggle with Brashear, getting shot in his left arm to divert suspicion.[citation needed]

Brashear then exited through the Whitakers' back door and jumped over the fence into the rear neighbor's yard. Bart's brother Kevin died within minutes of being shot; his mother Patricia died shortly after the start of her airlift by Life Flight to Memorial Hermann Hospital. Bart told first responders that he thought the gunman was black, in order to divert suspicion away from Brashear.[12][13][page needed][third-party source needed] Bart's father Kent survived the shooting in which his wife and son were killed.[11]

Investigation and arrest[]

Whitaker left for Mexico in June of 2004, using $3000 to persuade an acquaintance to assist him; he assumed the name "Rudy Rios", found work in a furniture shop in Cerralvo, Mexico, developed a relationship with a woman, and concocted a story of service in Afghanistan to explain his gunshot wound.[4] He lived there under the false name for over a year. On September 15, 2005, a capital murder warrant was issued against Whitaker.[14][15][verification needed] The acquaintance who had assisted Whitaker to flee became aware of reward money that had been offered for his arrest,[clarification needed] and communicated Whitaker's whereabouts to the police.[4]

Cooperating with US authorities, Mexican authorities arrested Whitaker without incident under immigration charges. In September 2005, Whitaker was handed over to U.S. authorities at the border town of Laredo, Texas, where he was arrested for capital murder.[14]

Trial and conviction[]

Whitaker was refused a plea bargain by the District Attorney[who?] in return for his admission of guilt, and was instead tried for capital murder.[citation needed] The trial began in March 2007, led by prosecutor Fred Felcman.[16][17] It was conducted before a judge[who?] and a Fort Bend County jury.[16] Evidence was presented that Whitaker had recruited two individuals, Steve Champagne and Chris Brashear, ages 24 and 25 at the time of the 2007 trial, respectively,[16][11] Champagne to be the getaway car driver and Brashear to carry out the shootings in Whitaker's plan to murder his immediate family.[11] Early evidence was presented that Whitaker had previously recruited others in abortive plots to murder his family, plots involving a co-conspirator named Adam Hipp, who had attended Clements High School with Whitaker.[16][18] At the trial, Hipp stated that he had contacted the Sugar Land Police Department with information about previous plots after he heard about the Whitaker family murders 2003; he was given immunity from prosecution in exchange for testifying for the prosecution against Whitaker.[8]: Ch.10 [page needed]

The early testimony from Hipp[when?] described a first Whitaker plan to set a lake house owned by his grandmother on fire "to kill his parents, brother and other relatives", a plan that never went beyond discussions, but one that included a ruse as an element—the defendent's "com[ing] out of the blaze with burns so that it would appear he had narrowly escaped".[16] Hipp, who admitted on cross-examination that his participation in Whitaker's schemes had been "motivated by money"—police testified that Whitaker stood to inherit the family estate, valued at $1 million—further testified that in December 2000, prior to the murders of which he stood accused, Whitaker had made another preempted plan, this time to "ambush his parents and brother as they entered their home after a dinner outing", a plan noted by the Houston Chronicle to be "virtually identical to the one [Champagne would soon testify] was actually carried out three years later."[16] The trial judge's[who?] handling of the prosecution's use of a phone recording between Hipp and Whitaker would become an element of the defense's later appeal of the verdict.[18][non-primary source needed]

In other early testimony, Steve Champagne described Whitaker recruiting him to be the getaway driver for Whitaker's eventual 2003 plan to murder his immediate family,[11] and his testimony included the detail that Whitaker's gunshot wound was a ploy to make it look like he was a victim, too.[16] Prosecutors presented evidence that although it wasn't Whitaker who shot his family members, he was responsible for the murders because he played the leading part in the conspiracy to commit the murders[19][better source needed]

The prosecution's theory of motive focused on financial gain, with evidence variously described as pointing to Whitaker standing to inherit "about $1.5 million" after the death of his parents and brother,[4] or that he had wanted to capitalize on a million-dollar life insurance payout.[citation needed] At trial, it was noted that Whitaker had access to an $80,000 trust fund from his grandparents, although he testified that he did not know he could access it.[8]: Ch.53 [page needed] Whitaker denied prosecution claims regarding the insurance profit motive, arguing that the only life insurance policy the family had was for $50,000 on his father's life.[citation needed][clarification needed]

Kent Whitaker had already forgiven his son and his co-conspirators for their parts in the murders (reported on as early as 2007),[20] and had tried at the time of his son's trial, years earlier, to persuade the jury not to deliver a death sentence.[citation needed]

On Friday, March 2, 2007, the State of Texas[who?] rested the case for the prosecution in the capital murder trial for Thomas Bartlett Whitaker's role in the deaths of his his brother and mother.[16] Randy McDonald, attorney for the defense, rested their case on the same day, without calling witnesses, and the judge[who?] scheduled closing arguments for the morning of March 5th.[16] After closing arguments, the case went to the jury.[when?][[:Category:|]] After deliberation,[when?] the Fort Bend County jury convicted Whitaker of capital murder,[11] under the Texas law of parties.[12][verification needed][third-party source needed] The trial had lasted six days in total; the "jury deliberat[ed] for 2 hours, and sentenced Whitaker to death".[4][11]

Co-conspirator convictions[]

Chris Brashear received a life sentence for his role in the murders, in a plea bargain worked out with prosecutors; Steven Champagne received 15 years after serving as the main witness for the prosecution.[11]

Whitaker appeals[]

Whitaker appealed his death sentence suggesting nine points of error, the first four of which the final Appeals Court proceeding addressed as new arguments, the last five of which were cursorily rejected as having been earlier decided without subsequent change in opinion; the first four were, that the trial court:

  • should have included in the trial record the written proffer made by Whitaker's original counsel "to persuade the prosecutor not to seek the death penalty", and that it
  • errantly allowed prosecutors to refer to that document, and to plea negotiations at trial;
  • allowed "nonuniform 'application of the law under which [he] was tried and sentenced to death'" in allowing the state to seek the death penalty without "respect to any guidelines", resulting in violation of his state and federal constitutional rights; and that its
  • allowing admission of the recording related to the 2001 murder plot involving Adam Hipp without removal of arguably inadmissable, prejudicial content constituted a reversible error, thus denying Whitaker a fair trial.[18][non-primary source needed]

The Appeals court found in favor of the appellant on none of these points of law, fully argued.[18][non-primary source needed] The remaining five points were also decided against the defendant based on prior rejection of the same claims.[when?][18][non-primary source needed][21]

After losing the appeal to the federal courts early in 2017,[22] Whitaker's legal team appealed his claims to the U.S. Supreme Court, with the new appeal being docketed on July 6, 2017,[23][non-primary source needed] based on the assertion that "his trial lawyers were deficient and that Fort Bend County prosecutors engaged in misconduct", in the latter case, that they were improper in their use, in trial, of facts surrounding an unsuccessful attempt by the defense to negotiate a pre-trial plea agreement.[22] The appeal was certiorari denied on October 10, 2017, with the Court providing no comment or explanation.[23][22] On November 1, 2017, his death warrant was signed, scheduling his execution for February 22, 2018.[24]

Whitaker's defense team lodged an appeal focused on the purity of drugs used in Texas executions in 2017-2018.[verification needed] The State of Texas executes by overdosing the condemned with pentobarbital from a compounding pharmacy, and Whitaker's defense lawyers had claimed the state's first two executions of 2018 were botched because of old lethal injection drugs.[citation needed][25] Whitaker withdrew his appeal pertaining to the purity of the drug used, pending at the Supreme Court of the United States, just before a decision by the Texas Governor to grant clemency and commute his sentence.[3]

Commutation of sentence[]

Alongside the legal submission from the Whitaker legal team—an 18 page document from Whitaker lawyers Keith S. Hampton and James Rytting (the latter at Hilder & Associates)[26][non-primary source needed]—Whitaker's father, Kent, also appealed, cooperating with the legal team's submission and writing a letter in the public forum of the Houston Chronicle on January 18, 2018, asking that the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles "spare my son".[27] The Chairman of that Board[who?] also met with Kent Whitaker for a half hour.[28][full citation needed]

On February 20, 2018, in a rare decision, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles recommended that the death sentence be commuted to life imprisonment,[29] The seven-member Board unanimously recommended clemency to Republican Governor Greg Abbott,[30][29] the first time it had done so unanimously since 2009.[3][29]

Abbott accepted their recommendation and commuted Whitaker's death sentence, noting that Whitaker had "voluntarily and forever waived any and all claims to parole in exchange for a commutation of his sentence from death to life without the possibility of parole." This was the first commutation of such a sentence from Abbott, and the first from a Texas Governor since 2007.[2][3] Abbott cited the fact that Whitaker did not fire the gun and that his father, Kent, "insists that he would be victimized again if the state put to death his last remaining immediate family member", as the reasons for the commutation.[31][non-primary source needed][32][non-primary source needed]

Whitaker responded to the commutation of his sentence by saying, "I am thankful for this decision, not for me but for my dad."[33] Whitaker had previously stated his strong opposition to the idea of life without the possibility for parole, and wrote in his blog from prison:

[Life without parole], however, offends and assaults everything I believe in. It irrevocably denies any possibility of rehabilitation; it eviscerates hope entirely. It is for this reason that I would never sign for it, even if that were the only way to evade a return to death row. [Thomas Bartlett Whitaker, February 17, 2012][34]

Whitaker had earlier stated, when his execution was still expected, that he felt that his father would be further victimized by the execution.[35]

Chronology of cases[]

  • Thomas Bartlett Whitaker v. The State of Texas, 286 S.W.3d 355 (Tex. Crim. App. 2009). Finalisation of Whitaker's conviction within the Texas system. Case No. AP-75,654, arising from Cause No. 42,969 in the 400th District Court, Fort Bend County, Texas. The court opens, noting that the Appellant did not "challenge the sufficiency of... evidence" supporting the original conviction for capital murder, appealing only the sentence of death, there raising "raises nine points of error". The court cursorily rejected five as having been earlier decided (without subsequent change in court opinion). Four others the Court addressed as new arguments, regarding the prosecutions reference at trial to Whitaker's original pre-trial "proffer" for penalty other than death and its omission from the trial record, "nonuniform 'application of the law'" during trial and sentencing, and admission at trial of arguably prejudicial parts of a recording related to the 2001 murder plot; the Appellant argued these constituted reversible error denying Whitaker's state and federal constitutional rights to a fair trial. The Court concluded, "[f]inding no merit in any... points" and "affirmed the judgment of the trial court", including sentence.
  • Thomas Whitaker; Perry Williams, v. Brad Livingston, Executive Director of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice; William Stephens, Director, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Correctional Institutions Division; James Jones; Unknown Executioners (5th Cir. 2015).Text "Before Prado, Elrod, and Graves, Circuit Judges. / Per Curiam / Pursuant to 5th Cir. R. 47.5, the court has determined that this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except under the limited circumstances set forth in... 47.5.4." Case No. 13-20750, Appeal of the Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1) dismissal, by the district court, of a defendant civil action that had asserted that their rights to due process, access to the courts, and punishment not cruel or unusual were violated. Here, the order of the district court was vacated, and the case remanded "so that Whitaker [and Williams be] able to fully develop... claims based on the existing protocol for an appropriate trial on the merits."
  • Thomas Bartlett Whitaker, Petitioner v. Lorie Davis, Director, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Correctional Institutions Division (U.S. October 10, 2017).Text Appeal of Whitaker's case to the U.S. Supreme Court, Case No. 17-5080, Capital Case, docketed on July 6, 2017, information drawn from a posting of the Order List for 583 U.S. for Tuesday, October 10, 2017 (entry on p. 6 of 12 pp.). For the Supreme Court record listing all proceedings and orders arising from the July 6, 2017 U.S. docketing of the appeal of the April 4, 2017 decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (lower court, case no. 16-70013), see this record, accessed January 6, 2022. The petition was certiorari denied on October 10, 2017, with the Court providing no comment or explanation.
  • Whitaker vs. Stephens[when?][full citation needed][clarification needed]
  • Thomas Bartlett Whitaker vs. Lorie Davis[when?][full citation needed][clarification needed]
  • Thomas Whitaker and Christopher Wilkins, et al v. Oliver J. Bell, Members of the Tx. Brd. of Criminal Justice, John Whitmire, David J. Callender, M.D., Governor Rick Perry, et al[when?][full citation needed][clarification needed]

Other post-conviction developments[]

Thomas Whitaker and other inmates initiated an unsuccessful class action against the State of Texas, addressing the conditions on its death row,[36][non-primary source needed] where inmates are kept in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day.[37][verification needed][better source needed]

Kent Whitaker, his father and a surviving victim of the crime, wrote the book, Murder by Family: The Incredible True Story of a Son's Treachery and a Father's Forgiveness, which—as described by Barry Leibowitz for CBS News—is about his "heart-wrenching journey... to forgive the nameless stranger" responsible for his wounding, and the "brutal murder of his wife and son", a journey that included his realizing that the murder "had been orchestrated by [his] oldest son Bart".[38] Whitaker provides an account from his persective as father, "behind-the-scenes", focusing on the time frame from the crime through his son's sentencing, addressing motive, and including portions of his correspondence with his son.[38][13]

Whitaker appears to have earned at least two degrees, variously reported as a correspondence "bachelors... degree in English literature" from California State University, Dominguez Hills (CalState-DH),[39] or, alternatively, an "undergraduate degree... from Adams State University,[40][better source needed] and a correspondence "masters degree in English literature" from CalState-DH,[39] or, alternatively, a "[m]asters [d]egree in Humanities" from CalState-DH.[40][better source needed] These are reported to have been earned while he was on death row.[citation needed] For the latter, he appears to have presented a thesis in partial fulfillment of the degree, entitled "Who Fears Hell Runs Toward It", in the summer of 2018.[41][non-primary source needed] The masters thesis has been subject of some controversy, as someone appears to have offered it as a book for sale (see also below).[42][needs update]

Writings[]

Whitaker has contributed to Solitary Watch, where he wrote about the effects of solitary confinement on himself and other death row inmates.[43] He also contributed[clarification needed] to Hell Is a Very Small Place: Voices from Solitary Confinement.[citation needed][44]

Whitaker won prizes in PEN America's Prison Writing Program for his essay "Hell's Kitchen",[45] "Manufacturing Anomie"[citation needed] and the essay "A Nothing Would Do as Well."[citation needed] He was named a 2018-2019 PEN America Writing for Justice Fellow,[46] a program that aims to support creation of "written works of lasting merit that illuminate critical issues related to mass incarceration and catalyze public debate".[47] Scholarly attention has been directed toward this PEN program, noting that while PEN was an esteemed human rights organization known for the defense of free speech rights, in particular of persecuted writers, the Prison Writing Program presented a distinct agenda, namely in a "[belief] in the restorative and rehabilitative power of writing." to "help convicted criminals become writers", an aim which raises questions about the nature and residence of the power inmates are given, and about its impact on prisoners and on society.[45] Ira Wells, in particular, points to Whitaker's participation in the program to exemplify the questions, declaring Whitaker's prison writing powerful in its ability to "shock readers into a sensory appreciation of the radical strangeness of [his] life lived".[45]

In 2007, Whitaker founded an inmate blog, originally created with the assistance of his father, now maintained by volunteers, entitled Minutes Before Six; it has published his work and trial records, and articles, poetry, and art from inmates held in prisons in the United States.[48][49] The name of the blog references "the hour at which executions take place in Texas".[50][better source needed][6]

As of 2019, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice was investigating a report that Whitaker's masters thesis was being offered for sale, online.[42][needs update]

Written works[]

Examples of the prison writing of the title subject, with dates of their first publication, include:

  • Whitaker, Thomas Bartlett (2016). "A Nothing Would Do As Well". In Casella, Jean; Ridgeway, James; Shourd, Sarah (eds.). Hell Is a Very Small Place: Voices from Solitary Confinement. The New Press. pp. 101–113. ISBN 9781620971376.
  • —, — — (May 5, 2011). "Hell's Kitchen". PEN.org. Retrieved April 25, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)[full citation needed]
  • —, — — (July 7, 2014). "Manufacturing Anomie". PEN.org. Retrieved April 25, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)[full citation needed]
  • —, — — (July 7, 2014). "A Nothing Would Do As Well". PEN.org. Retrieved April 25, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)[full citation needed]

Further reading[]

See also[]

  • Jennifer Pan – an Ontario woman who arranged for the murder of her family after faking attendance at a university
  • Dana Ewell – a California man who arranged the execution of his family after lying about business success while at college
  • Atif Ahmad Rafay – a Washington man who killed his mother, father, disabled sister, and best friend for financial gain

References[]

  1. ^ Hanson, Eric (September 19, 2007). "Triggerman in Sugar Land Slayings Pleads Guilty". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved April 25, 2017.
  2. ^ a b ABC13 Staff (February 22, 2018). "Clemency Rare for Death Row Convicts in Texas". ABC13.com. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d McCullough, Jolie (February 20, 2018). "In Rare Move, Texas Parole Board Recommends Clemency for Death Row Inmate Thomas Whitaker". Texas Tribune. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Vanapalli, Viswa (September 24, 2021). "Is Bartlett Whitaker Dead or Alive? Where is He Now?". TheCinemaholic.com. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  5. ^ a b c Reisner, Rebecca (October 11, 2019). "Bart Whitaker: Relative Tragedy". Medium.com. Retrieved January 4, 2022. [teaser] Updates to your favorite episodes: A Young Heir Tries to Hasten His Fortune (“Family Interrupted,” Forensic Files).
  6. ^ a b c d Chevigny, Bell (August 9, 2018). "The Governor, the Father, and the Murderer". Medium.com. Retrieved January 4, 2022. Note, the reporter for the preceding citation states the potential conflict of interest, of having served as a judge for the PEN Prison Writing Contest, including in its judging of the works of the title subject of this article. [Quote] "The state of Texas executes its condemned around six o’clock p.m. Minutes before six on February 22, 2018, Governor Greg Abbott commuted the death sentence of Thomas Bartlett Whitaker to life in prison without parole. Abbot was following the very rare unanimous recommendation of the Board of Pardons and Parole that Whitaker live out his life in prison. For Texas this was astonishing. Nearly 150 people have been executed since a Texas governor last spared a condemned prisoner. Abbot has allowed thirty executions to take place during his three year tenure.... / Two of [Whitaker's] essays and a short story won first prizes in the PEN Prison Writing Contest. As a juror for the contest, I first encountered his striking talent in these works. / The elder of two sons, he grew up in Sugar Land, an affluent, homogeneous community outside Houston. His brother won more of their parents’ attention, because of his learning disability. Whitaker was jealous and withdrew to the world of books. (When he was twelve, he was intensely affected by Albert Camus’ absurdist novel The Stranger...)."
  7. ^ Palkot, Stephen (February 19, 2018) [March 6, 2007]. "Whitaker Faces Life or Death". Fort Bend Herald and Texas Coaster. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  8. ^ a b c d Mitchell, Corey (2010). Savage Son. New York: Kensington/Pinnacle. ISBN 9780786020133. Retrieved January 4, 2020.[verification needed][full citation needed] Note, no access to content is apparently available online.
  9. ^ Martinez, Deidre (February 19, 2018). "Former Baylor Student Faces Execution". Baylor Lariat. Waco, Texas: Baylor University. Retrieved January 5, 2020.
  10. ^ Phillips, Harry; Stohler, Elissa (May 1, 2009). "Gov. Commutes Death Sentence for Man Convicted of Masterminding Murder of Mother, Brother". CBS News. Retrieved September 18, 2018. Unknown to his parents, the dinner celebration marking his graduation was a fraud. He'd dropped out of school months earlier.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h Hanson, Eric (November 19, 2007). "Driver in Sugar Land Murder Plot Gets 15 years". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved April 25, 2017.
  12. ^ a b c d ABC News Staff & Whitaker, Kent (January 19, 2009). "'Murder by Family': Read Shocking Excerpt". ABCNews.go.com. Retrieved January 4, 2022.[third-party source needed]
  13. ^ a b Whitaker, Kent (2008). Murder by Family: The Incredible True Story of a Son's Treachery and a Father's Forgiveness. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9781439139981. Retrieved January 6, 2022.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)[page needed][third-party source needed] See also this archived version, ISBN 9781416578130, which requires registration for access.
  14. ^ a b Martinez-Ramundo, Denise & Phillips, Harry (April 28, 2009). "'Sugar Land' Culprit Made New Life in Mexico". ABCNews.go.com. Retrieved January 6, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  15. ^ Kumar, Seshadri (September 25, 2005). "Bart Whitaker Arrested". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h i Hanson, Eric (March 2, 2007). "Testimony Ends in Whitaker's Murder Trial". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved February 15, 2018.
  17. ^ Europe World News Staff (February 20, 2018). "Reprieve for Man Who Plotted Own Family's Murder". EuropeWorldNews.com. Retrieved January 4, 2022. Fred Felcman, the original prosecutor in the case, said the board made its decision purely because of the father’s forgiveness and disregarded the large number of others affected by the murders. He said testimony from psychiatrists and the family’s investigators who [had stated that] Bart was manipulative was disregarded.
  18. ^ a b c d e Thomas Bartlett Whitaker v. The State of Texas, 286 S.W.3d 355, 355 and final (Tex. App. 2009) ("[No. AP-75,654] From Cause No. 42,969 in the 400th District Court / Fort Bend County / Hervey, J., delivered the opinion of the Court in which Keller, P.J., Meyers, Womack, Keasler, Holcomb and Cochran, JJ., joined. Price, and Johnson, JJ., concurred... The judgment of the trial court is affirmed. / Hervey, J. / Delivered: June 24, 2009").
  19. ^ "IamWhoWeR Mulhall" [video post by] (June 19, 2017). Bart Whitaker On The Stand (pirated, uploaded video). Event occurs at UNKNOWN TIME. Retrieved January 5, 2022.[full citation needed][non-primary source needed] Note, the time-stamp of the point in this 4:22 video that is being referenced has not been provided.
  20. ^ Kever, Jeannie (October 19, 2007). "Father Forgives Son Who Had Mom, Brother Killed". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  21. ^ In brief, those five points were (i) that execution by lethal injection violated the 8th and 14th amendments to the U.S. Constitution, (ii) that denial of the defendent's motion to hold various sections of applicable articles of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure [37.071 SEC. 2(e) AND (f) with regard to "burden of proof"] unconstitutional was in error, (iii) likewise for those sections with regard to "failure to require mitigation be considered", (iv) likewise for section 37.071(2)(b)(2) "parties special issue," and finally, (v), that in failing to grant certain of the defendant's requests (e.g., "clarifying voir dire instruction", etc.) and in overruling his further motion to hold unconstitutional a "statuatory definition of mitigating evidence", the trial court again erred. The Appeals court found that the "Appellant... [was] aware that this Court has rejected these claims", and despite his requesting liberty to brief the court in case it had since changed its positions on them, that the "Court has not changed its position" such that the remaining "[p]oints of error... are overruled."
  22. ^ a b c Graczyk, Michael (October 10, 2017). "Man Condemned in Family Murder Plot Loses High Court Appeal". U.S. News and World Report. Associated Press. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  23. ^ a b Thomas Bartlett Whitaker, Petitioner v. Lorie Davis, Director, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Correctional Institutions Division (U.S. October 10, 2017) ("[Case] No. 17-5080, Capital Case. Order List: 583 U.S. / Tuesday, October 10, 2017 (12 pp.) / Certiorari Denied / 17-5080 Whitaker, Thomas B. V. Davis, Dir., TX DCJ (p. 6). NOTE: volume, reporter, etc. UNKNOWN.").Text For list of the Supreme Court record of all proceedings and orders (and other information) stemming from the July 6, 2017 U.S. docketing of the appeal of the April 4, 2017 decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (lower court, case no. 16-70013), see this record, accessed January 6, 2022.
  24. ^ Blakinger, Keri (November 6, 2017). "Judge Sets Execution Date for Sugar Land Man Who Had Family Killed for $1 Million Inheritance". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  25. ^ See also McCullough, Jolie (February 20, 2018). "Texas Prison System Stalls Release of Public Information on Executions". Texas Tribune. Retrieved February 15, 2018.
  26. ^ Hampton Keith S. & Rytting, James; Attorneys for Thomas Whitaker (n.d.). "Before the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles / Request for Commutation of Death Sentence to a Lesser Penalty" (PDF). Assets.DocumentCloud.org. Retrieved January 5, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)[better source needed]
  27. ^ Whitaker, Kent (January 18, 2018). "A Father's Plea: Spare My Son [Friday Letters]". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  28. ^ Kelly, Megyn & Whitaker, Kent (February 6, 2018). Father Fights To Save Son Who Murdered Mother And Brother (streaming video). New York, NY: The Today Show, via YouTube.com. Event occurs at UNKNOWN TIME. Retrieved January 5, 2022.[full citation needed] Note, the time-stamp of the point in this 10:29 video that is being referenced has not been provided.
  29. ^ a b c Weissert, Will & Graczyk, Michael (February 20, 2018). "Texas Parole Board Recommends Killer Be Spared From Death". Washington Post. Archived from the original on February 21, 2018. Retrieved February 20, 2018.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  30. ^ Graczyk, Michael (February 21, 2018). "Texas Governor Weighs Parole Board's Advice on Inmate's Fate". U.S. News and World Report. Associated Press. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  31. ^ Office of the Texas Governor (February 22, 2018). "Governor Abbott Commutes Death Sentence of Thomas Bartlett Whitaker" (press release). Gov.Texas.gov. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  32. ^ Abbott, Greg & Pablos, Rolando B. (February 22, 2018). "Proclamation of the Governor of the State of Texas [Commuting Death Sentence of Thomas Bartlett Whitaker]" (PDF). Gov.Texas.gov. Retrieved January 5, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) See also the unformated, digital version of the same.
  33. ^ Arnold, Robert (February 22, 2018). "Whitaker Statement to Prison Officials". Twitter.com. Retrieved March 2, 2018.
  34. ^ Whitaker, Thomas Bartlett (February 17, 2012). "In Response to Feministe". MinutesBeforeSix.blogspot.com. Retrieved February 23, 2018.
  35. ^ Click2Houston Staff (August 1, 2012). "Bart Whitaker Talks About Eventual Execution". Click2Houston.com. Retrieved April 25, 2017.
  36. ^ Thomas Whitaker and Christopher Wilkins, et al v. Oliver J. Bell, Members of the Tx. Brd. of Criminal Justice, John Whitmire, David J. Callender, M.D., Governor Rick Perry, et al (E.D. Tex.)—Class Action Complaint, Jury Trial Demanded; NOTE: volume, reporter, etc. and Civil Action [Case] No. UNKNOWN.[full citation needed]
  37. ^ Sasser, Brian [video post by]; Whitaker, Thomas Bartlett; others (2013). KPRC-TV Death Row interview with Thomas Bart Whitaker (pirated, uploaded video). Event occurs at UNKNOWN TIME. Retrieved January 5, 2022.[full citation needed] Note, the time-stamp of the point in this 4:02 video that is being referenced has not been provided. Note also, this video could not be tied to the apparent producer, Click2Houston.com, and so must be considered suspect.
  38. ^ a b Leibowitz, Barry (August 24, 2009). "Book 'Em: Murder by Family". CBS News. Retrieved January 6, 2022. Murder by Family... is the story of Kent Whitaker's heart-wrenching journey toward forgiveness and faith after the brutal murder of his wife and son. While lying in the emergency room after being airlifted from his home, Kent soon learned of his family's fate. His emotions called for a response to either forever hate the murderer... or forgive him. At that moment, Kent made the decision to forgive the nameless stranger who had taken so much. 'I have had a hundred people tell me that they think I'm nuts—that I should hate the shooter and cry out for vengeance,' writes Kent. 'Perhaps I am crazy, but I believe that in those early moments God worked supernaturally, allowing me to forgive completely and immediately… Little did I realize just how important my decision to forgive would be in the coming months.' An investigation uncovered that a murder plot had been orchestrated by Kent's oldest son Bart—whom Kent had unknowingly forgiven. Kent Whitaker gives readers a behind-the-scenes account from the day of the murders up to Bart's sentencing, and includes excerpts of letters from Bart as he tries to explain why he did it.
  39. ^ a b Hennessy-Fiske, Molly (February 14, 2018). "Texas Father Seeks Clemency for Son Who Tried to Kill Him". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
  40. ^ a b Whitaker, Thomas Bartlett & PEN.org Staff (January 6, 2022). "Thomas Bartlett Whitaker [contributor autobiography]". PEN.org. Retrieved January 6, 2022.[third-party source needed] Note, this non-independent source also indicates this unspecified undergraduate degree as being summa cum laude, a fact not yet independently sourced—which must be so, given the apparently contradictory reporting on this degree, and on his pre-incarceration academic performance (that included academic probationary status, vide infra),
  41. ^ Whitaker, Thomas Bartlett (2018). "Who Fears Hell Runs Toward It: On the Christian Metaphysical Foundations of the American Penitentiary and the Missing Image of Resistance in Foucault's 'Discipline and Punish'" (CalState-DH thesis posting). Scholarworks.CalState.edu. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  42. ^ a b Beausoleil, Sophia (August 14, 2019). "Convicted Killer Accused of Writing, Selling Book While in Prison". Click2Houston.com. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  43. ^ Whitaker, Thomas Bartlett & Hettiger, Julia (July 27, 2016). "Voices From Solitary: The War of All Against All". SolitaryWatch.com. Retrieved January 4, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  44. ^ Casella, Jean; Ridgeway, James; Shourd, Sarah, eds. (2016). Hell Is a Very Small Place: Voices from Solitary Confinement. The New Press. ISBN 9781620971376.
  45. ^ a b c Wells, Ira (January 1, 2014). ""No Hostages through These Doors": Thomas Bartlett Whitaker's "Hell's Kitchen" and the Politics of PEN". Canadian Review of American Studies. 44 (3 [Winter]): 471-499. doi:10.3138/cras.2014.001. S2CID 144743297. Retrieved January 4, 2022. The PEN Prison Writing Program... has a slightly different agenda... to help convicted criminals become writers '[believing] in the restorative and rehabilitative power of writing'... [and] 'use of the written word as a legitimate form of power.” But what is the nature of the “power” of the written word? And what, moreover, will this power restore and rehabilitate? [Are PEN] honouring an important strand of America’s liberal intellectual heritage? ...pledging allegiance to a romantic coupling of art and freedom? ...inadvertently helping to bind prisoners ever more insidiously to the carceral regime? Or... claiming something that is actually true? This article addresses these questions through a reading of Thomas Bartlett Whitaker’s prize-winning essay “Hell’s Kitchen” and finds that the power of Whitaker’s prison writing resides in its capacity to shock readers into a sensory appreciation of the radical strangeness of life lived in a state of civil death.
  46. ^ PEN Staff (2018). "Writing for Justice Fellowship 2018-2019". PEN.org. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  47. ^ PEN Staff (2022). "Writing for Justice Fellowship". PEN.org. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  48. ^ Hopper, Jessica (September 8, 2011). "Death Row Bloggers Get Help From Victims". ABCNews.go.com. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  49. ^ Milito, Dina [Executive Director]; O’Neill, Teri [Director]; Whitaker, Thomas Bartlett [Founder and Creative Advisor]; five others. (January 4, 2022). "The Minutes Before Six Team". MinutesBeforeSix.blogspot.com. Retrieved January 4, 2022. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  50. ^ Andress, Justin (September 23, 2021). "'Far Worse Than Any Death Sentence': Horrific Realities of Solitary Confinement". Ranker.com. Retrieved January 6, 2022.[better source needed]

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