BILLY THESSING

DOB: Sept. 11, 1968
Race: White
Gender: Male

County of conviction: Pulaski
Number of counts: One
Race of victim:
Gender of victim: Female
Date of crime: February 11, 2003
Date of sentencing: Sept. 10, 2004

Trial Counsel:

Bill McLean

Current proceedings:

Last judicial decision:

• Cert denied in Thessing v . Arkansas, 127 S.Ct. 193 (Oct. 2, 2006).

Current counsel:

William A. McLean
523 West Third Street
Little Rock, AR 72201-2309
(501) 372-4670

Reported opinions:

• Cert denied in Thessing v . Arkansas, 127 S.Ct. 193 (Oct. 2, 2006).
   
• Affirmance of trial court’s imposition of death by the Arkansas Supreme Court. Thessing v. State, ___ S.W.3d ___, 2006 WL 496141 (Ark. Mar 02, 2006), cert. denied, 10/02/2006, ___ S.Ct. ___ 2006 WL 1880945.

Significant legal issues:

• Competency to stand trial, mental illness
   
• Voir Dire issues- Judge permitted prosecution to question potential jurors, but not defense counsel
   
• Trial court permitted evidence of drug use to come in at trial
   
• Improper closing arguments: the prosecutor advised the jury that the governor would set the execution date and the manner of execution would be determined by statute.
   
• Trial court improperly instructed jury that they need to find that mitigators "probably exist" rather than "found to exist" as provided by statute and improperly required the jury to find that the mitigating circumstances occurred at the time of the "murder".

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