Idaho v. Lankford

Mark Henry Lankford (Lankford) appealed after he was convicted by jury on two counts of felony murder. Lankford and his brother, Bryan Lankford (Bryan), were both convicted and sentenced to death for the 1983 murders of Robert and Cheryl Bravence, who were brutally murdered while camping in the Sheep Creek area of Idaho County. Lankford argued that the district court erred in multiple ways and that he is entitled to a new trial. The State argued Lankford failed to prove that reversible error was committed by the district court and that Lankford’s convictions should be affirmed. After review, the Idaho Supreme Court found that a witness' false testimony about his motive for testifying could have influenced the judgment of the jury. Furthermore, the Court found that the prosecutor's failure to disclose the full details of the agreement for the witness to testify undermined "[its] confidence in the outcome of the trial such that we cannot be sure the defendant 'received a fair trial, understood as a trial resulting in a verdict worthy of confidence.'" Therefore, the Court held Lankford's right to a fair trial was violated and he was entitled to a new one. View "Idaho v. Lankford" on Justia Law