John T. Floyd Law Firm
Houston Criminal Lawyer
"Serious Criminal Defense Throughout Texas"
Experienced Criminal Defense Lawyer
Trials, Sentencings and Appeals
Federal And State Criminal Defense
Phone # (713) 224-0101
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Latest Texas Death Penalty cases from the Criminal Courts of Texas
Friday, February 5, 2007
Media Advisory: James Lewis Jackson Scheduled For Execution
AUSTIN – Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott offers the following information about James Lewis Jackson, who is scheduled to be executed after 6 p.m. Wednesday, February 7, 2007. The 47-year-old Jackson was convicted and sentenced to die for the 1997 murders of his stepdaughters Ericka and Soncercia Mayes. The evidence presented at trial is as follows:
FACTS OF THE CRIME
In 1995, Jackson married Sharon Jackson and became the stepfather of her two teen-age daughters, Soncercia (“Sonny”) and Ericka. By 1997, however, Jackson’s drug addiction, sporadic employment, and controlling nature had produced problems in his marriage.
On April 9, 1997, one of Sharon’s co-workers became concerned when Sharon failed to pick her up for work. The co-worker contacted Sharon’s sister, who along with her mother, went to the Jacksons' apartment and entered the residence, finding Sonny’s and Ericka’s bodies in one bedroom and Sharon’s body in another bedroom. They had been choked to death.
At 9:40 a.m., James Jackson arrived in a car, as the Harris County Sheriff’s Department was investigating the killings. In the meantime, Detective Anthony Rossi, the lead investigator, arrived at the scene at about 9:45 a.m. Detective Rossi walked through the apartment and discovered a handwritten note on top of a chest of drawers. The note read: “I love Sharon, Sonny, Ericka. I could not take care of my family. I don’t have a job. I gave them back to God. He and they will understand. James.” Detective Rossi then went outside to talk to Jackson.
Rossi asked Jackson if he would come to the sheriff’s office and give a statement regarding his activities, and Jackson agreed to do so. Jackson ultimately confessed to killing his wife and stepdaughters.
PROCEDURAL HISTORY
On June 26, 1997, Jackson was indicted by a Harris County grand jury for the capital murders of Ericka and Soncercia Mayes. A jury found Jackson guilty of capital murder on January 28, 1998. On January 29, 1998, after a separate punishment hearing, the court assessed Jackson’s punishment at death.
Jackson appealed his conviction and sentence to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, which affirmed the conviction and sentence on December 13, 2000. The U.S. Supreme Court denied Jackson’s petition for writ of certiorari on June 4, 2001.
Jackson filed a state application for writ of habeas corpus in the trial court on July 6, 2000. The trial court subsequently entered findings of fact and conclusions of law recommending that Jackson be denied relief. On September 11, 2002, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals adopted the trial court’s findings and conclusions and denied relief.
On August 20, 2003, Jackson filed a habeas petition in a Houston U.S. District Court. On June 14, 2005, the federal district court denied Jackson’s petition. Jackson then sought permission from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to appeal the district court’s denial of relief. The appellate court denied Jackson’s request on May 30, 2006. Jackson then petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for certiorari review. The Court denied Jackson’s petition on January 8, 2007.
PRIOR CRIMINAL HISTORY
During the penalty phase, the State presented evidence that Jackson had been convicted in Dallas County of the felony offense of injuring an elderly person. Jackson shot the victim, a former girlfriend’s elderly father, in the face with a shotgun, rendering the father deaf in one ear. Jackson was sentenced to ten years in prison for this offense. Jackson was paroled to Harris County in March 1994.
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