Another legal victory for Angola 3’s Albert Woodfox

Albert Woodfox

Albert Woodfox, one of the Angola 3 political prisoners, has spent 42 years in solitary confinement in Louisiana. On Nov. 20, a three-judge panel of the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously to uphold a lower court’s decision to overturn Woodfox’s conviction for killing a prison guard (see workers.org: “Court rules for Albert Woodfox, now let him go!”). The following email update was released by the International Coalition to Free the Angola 3 on Feb. 3.

Today the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the unanimous decision of their own three-judge panel and denied Attorney General Buddy Caldwell’s request for an “en banc” rehearing of Albert’s case. This was the state’s last shot to reinstate Albert’s third overturned conviction through the U.S. Court of Appeals.

Though we expect they may continue to delay justice with a vain attempt to convince the U.S. Supreme Court to undo decades of solidly established constitutional law, Judge Brady’s original February 2013 decision throwing out Albert’s murder conviction stands stronger than ever before and it is now only a matter of time until the state is forced to either release or retry him.

In just over two weeks, on Thursday, Feb. 19, Albert will turn 68 years old. Though there are still weeks and months yet to go before he is released, he has never been closer to freedom.

Please take a moment to send him a note letting him know that we will continue to fight every day until he is freed — this will be the last birthday he will spend in a solitary cell!

Albert Woodfox #72148
David Wade Correctional Center
670 Bell Hill Road
Homer, LA 71040